For The Crown
by Pengping
Summary: The nightbreeds are killing, and vampires are feasting. The vampire king, who commanded those that walked in the night, is dead. Now his two heirs vie for his crown. As a fledgling of one of the heirs, Cain, and by extension Shido, is targeted by both. One of the king's heirs seeks blood, and the other power. Which will win? Or will someone else appear and steal the crown? NO SLASH
1. 7 Years Later (2006)

7 Years After the Finale

* * *

Shido Tatsuhiko knelt on the grimy ground of an alley in Yokohama and looked at the body as rain fell. It was a high school girl, and just as Yayoi had told him, the only wound was the bite marks on the girl's neck and apparent loss of blood. There was no doubt it was yet another vampire killing.

"What do you think?" Yayoi Matsunaga asked, standing beside him with an umbrella in hand.

"If this is the same vampire that killed the other two then they're killing for sport," Shido sighed quietly. "We don't need this much blood. Of course, there are so many vampire killings I have no idea which of the vampires this body belongs to."

Yayoi glanced towards the mouth of the alley where they were, but the other NOS agents were giving them room to work. Things had been tense ever since the incident with Mrs. Megumi and her half-breed son when they had learned Shido was a vampire. For now, they were content to leave him alone despite him being a breed. If Shido ever stopped solving cases and hunting down nightbreeds then the situation could quickly change.

They were keeping an eye on Shido anyway, concerned he might have something to do with the events of this past month. Throughout the past month, the cases of vampire deaths had spiked dramatically, and everyone at the NOS was confused. It was clear since the bite marks on the victim's didn't match that there were multiple vampires killing, but so far, they didn't know who they were. The NOS had also received word that the increases in vampire casualties was happening worldwide, not just at Yokohama. In fact, all nightbreed related crimes had risen to a level unseen since the NOS's creation.

"Why are so many killing right now?" Yayoi asked the air. "Why now all of a sudden? What changed?"

Shido shook his head, wishing that he knew. Because of his allegiance with the NOS and the humans, he wasn't a part of the nightbreed world. He didn't have a source of information among their numbers and was not up to date on events that were happening in it. Something had changed among the vampire community, but Shido had no idea what.

He stood, looking at the girl's body sadly. Because Shido was so clueless about events among his breed kin, he had no way knowledge to explain the recent killings, and no idea how to stop them. This girl would be far from the last casualty. There was a soft sound from further within the alley as Shido turned to leave, and he stopped.

"Yayoi," he told her quietly. "Keep walking away, but the vampire is still here."

Yayoi's eyes widened at Shido's words and she crossed her free arm over her chest so she could reach her pistol with the silver bullets easier as she reluctantly walked away so Shido would have be alone. It was more likely the vampire would come out if he were alone. Shido casually turned back towards the body and looked it over again. Just as he thought, there was a faint scent from the vampire present. The rain had masked its presence from him, and he couldn't tell if he knew the vampire.

"Come out," Shido ordered the vampire in the shadows as he raised his eyes from the body. "Why are you killing so many?"

There was movement in the shadows and a ten-year old girl with long, wavy brown hair stepped forward. Her eyes were vampire gold, and there was blood staining her lips and chin. It was the same 500-year old vampire girl Shido had been trapped in the well with.

She smiled at him, revealing red-stained fangs, and spoke arrogantly. "Why not? Haven't you heard?"

Shido looked at the girl hesitantly, and she sighed.

"I guess a traitor like you wouldn't know, but the king is dead." The girl giggled, and linked her hands behind her back, acting her physical age.

Shido was used to being called a traitor because he helped the humans, but he didn't know what the girl meant by her comment. "The king is dead? What king?"

Surprise made the vampire girl stand still, and she stared at him. "You really don't know anything, do you?"

Shido clenched his hands, and the girl shrugged.

"Well," she sighed, "he's dead, and now everyone wants to be the new king. I'm stocking up on blood. The more we eat the stronger we vampires get, and I want to see if I stand a chance at the crown."

Understanding dawned, and Shido stepped back into a fighting stance. "You can't mean that the vampire king is dead."

"You know we have a king," the girl shook her head at his naïveness. "I suppose that's a start."

"The vampire king… is dead?" Shido repeated.

Lightning flashed overhead as if to accent his dramatic question, and the girl giggled.

"I'm glad we got to meet again," she told him cheerfully, "but I've finished my meal so I'll see you later."

"Wait a minute," Shido ordered.

The girl turned to leave and Shido bit his hand, materializing his blood sword. His movement alerted Yayoi it was time to interfere and she drew her pistol quickly and raised it. She fired a few shots at the vampire girl, but the girl dodged them. When Shido swung with his sword, the girl bent backwards at the waist and his blade harmlessly passed above her nose. His swing had too much force behind it, and it threw him off balance.

The vampire girl smiled and slipped inside his guard. She barely tapped on his chest with the fingers of one of her hands, but there was an unnatural force behind it. Shido soared backwards through the air, and he crashed hard onto the asphalt almost at Yayoi's feet, sword clattering to the ground away from him.

Yayoi's gunshots had alerted the other NOS agents of the threat, and they jumped back as Shido crashed near them before firing at the vampire girl as well. The girl just laughed and faded into the shadows as the older vampires could do, vanishing. Her laughter echoed in the alleyway and slowly faded.

Yayoi tssked in annoyance, and lowered her gun. Shido's sword turned back into blood as he sat up next to her, rubbing his head. Aware of the presence of the NOS agents, Shido stood before Yayoi could help him.

"Are you alright?" Yayoi asked him and holstered her pistol back inside her jacket.

"I'm fine," Shido assured her.

He seemed shaken though, and that made Yayoi wary. "Did she tell you anything?"

Shido nodded, and stuffed his hands in his jacket pockets as if to brace himself against a winter wind. "I know why there are so many vampire killings all of a sudden."

"Why?" One of the NOS agents demanded.

"The king is dead," Shido repeated.

"King?" Yayoi asked curiously, "what king?"

"Ours," Shido answered seriously and raised his blue-green eyes to her. "The king of the vampires is dead."

There was dead silence for a few seconds, broken only by the fall of rain.

Finally, one of the NOS agents spoke up. "I thought the vampire king was just a legend. There really is an overall ruler the vampires answer to?"

Shido nodded agreement. "Most vampires live alone in their own hunting territory, accompanied occasionally by their fledglings. The vampire king is our central power though, and the king is the most powerful among us."

"Yet now he's dead," Yayoi said softly as she understood, "and there's a power vacuum."

"All of the vampires are feeding on humans to get stronger. They want to see if they can win the crown," Shido agreed.

"Hence the killings," the NOS agent sighed, understanding the situation now made sense. "Didn't the king have an heir, er, fledgling to take his place?"

"Two," Shido spoke as he tried to remember some of what Cain had told him, a rare event. "Both will be vying for the crown. Some of the vampires are likely supporting one heir or the other, but others are just trying to get the title themselves."

"Like the one that just ran off," the agent understood. "What's so special about becoming king other than the title? It's not like you vampires serve your king like humans would serve theirs."

"Whoever is the vampire king has the obedience of all vampires," Shido told him darkly. "No vampire can ignore an order given by them, no matter what that order entails. Vampires are the rarest species of nightbreed, yet the most powerful and respected. You could consider vampire the dominant species, and the other nightbreeds would also obey the king's orders."

Shido remembered how Cain had enthralled him so long ago when he had been hiding with the then pregnant Mrs. Megumi in a church. Cain had found them and simply by holding out his hand and telling Shido to come, Shido had done so. Sires had the ability to enthrall their fledglings to obey their orders, but the vampire king could force any vampire to do what they said, even if they were not their fledgling.

"So depending on the new king's wishes concerning humans, we could be in trouble." Yayoi summed up. "If the new king is one of the breeds who wants to take over the human world then…"

"It would mean total war between the nightbreeds and the humans," Shido said softly. "The last king had no vendetta against those of the light, and didn't care about them. He never pushed for war and let each breed do what they wanted how they wanted. The new king might take a more aggressive approach."

The agent swallowed, and said with a hesitant stutter as he backed away to the phone within his car. "I-I need to report this."

Shido nodded agreement that would be for the best, and the agent nearly ran to the car. His foot slipped once as he jerked open the door and scrambled into the passenger seat. With a little trouble, he sat down and reached for the phone between the front seats.

"This is Lieutenant Hayashi Seiji," the NOS officer said rapidly. "And I have new information on the recent increase in vampire killings."

Shido looked away and back at the girl's body. Depending on who became the new king, the situation between the humans of the day and the nightbreeds could change drastically.

* * *

 **Although we do have a general idea on a vampire's abilities, not very much about them is given as a species. This leaves it free for me. he he he. Refs made to Episode 6 with the vampire girl, and later to Episode 4 with Mrs. Megumi.**

 **First off, i'll repeat the warning that this doesn't have any slash in it. I prefer adventure and a plot that doesn't involve "snuggles". There's more then enough Nightwalker slash out there already if that's what you're looking for.**

 **I initially thought the series took place in San Francisco. You're going to look at me and go, what are you talking about Pengping? This is anime. Unless it takes place on a made-up world or alternate dimension it always happens in Japan. Sorry. I heard Bay Bridge and though it meant the San Francisco Bay Bridge. That's on me. It actually takes place in Yokohama.**


	2. Intruder

It stopped raining later that night, but come morning the downpour resumed. News about the battle for the crown of the vampires had spread among the NOS. Depending on who became the new king, everything could change, and it was a situation outside of the NOS's control.

The Vampire Hunter Association was even more cross about what was going on than the NOS. They had already known the old vampire king was dead, and were kept busy by all the other vampires feasting to build up strength or fighting each other on rooftops and inside abandoned buildings. In this past month that the king had been dead for, the Association had killed almost a hundred vampires.

Things were quiet inside Shido's office, and even Guni didn't have anything to say. Yayoi was at the NOS office to meet an Association representative that had stopped by to see how well the NOS were handling the increase in cases. Having a grade-A vampire hunter in the same city as Shido and Riho were making both vampires a little antsy.

The pouring rain lightened, and Riho, unable to sit still any longer, told Shido she was going to go outside for a bit. Rain was one of the only times that Riho could go outside during the day, and she had a lot to think about to. Since it was during the day there shouldn't be any nightbreeds to bother her, but Shido warned her that with the king dead things were different.

Riho knew that was true as she took her galoshes and umbrella and went outside. Soon the enjoyment of splashing through puddles distracted her from the darkness that had blanketed her thoughts, and she giggled. She looked up to watch the rainfall, and thought about the matter of the king.

Could Shido become the new king? He was a vampire after all, and if he was king then there was no risk of a war between the humans and nightbreeds. Maybe she could suggest it to Shido when she went back inside.

When Riho looked back down from the dark clouds and falling rain, she saw a woman standing in the rain near her. Riho was startled to see her, as she was sure there hadn't been anyone around when she had looked up. The woman, more of a girl in her late-teens, stood in the rain without an umbrella, her back to Riho.

Riho, being Riho, approached the older teenager. She had long, golden blonde hair tied out of her face in a Boho braid that went over her right shoulder, and her clothing was a simple set of dark denim jeans and a dark blue t-shirt. On her left wrist, she wore a wide leather bracelet that had a waning crescent moon inked onto it. The leather was black, and the moon bright red.

"Excuse me?" Riho asked her gently. "Are you alright?"

The teenager raised her head and turned towards Riho. The eyes were amber-gold, and she had a scar over her right eye. Her scar looked as if it had been made from a knife and ran vertically down her eye, although the eye itself was undamaged. She smiled at Riho.

"I'm fine," she assured Riho in a voice as smooth as silk. "I don't mind the rain. It's always so peaceful when it rains out. Do you like it?"

Riho nodded. "I used to hate it, but I think I know what you mean."

"Yes," she agreed. "I…"

She stopped talking suddenly and Riho looked at her curiously. It seemed something had surprised her.

"You're a vampire," the older teenager asked bluntly in surprise.

Riho blushed and took half a step back, "huh? No, I um, there's no such thing as vampires."

She gave a laugh that sounded fake even to her ears.

"Don't worry," the teenager assured her. "I am too. My name's Kyra."

"You're a vampire?" Riho asked softly.

She remembered Shido's warning that the nightbreeds would be acting different with everyone hunting for the crown, and felt the urge to step back. Would this vampire see Riho as competition for the crown?

"I won't attack you," Kyra told Riho bluntly, as if guessing her thoughts. "You're just a fledgling, and too young and inexperienced to be competitor for the crown."

Riho was both upset and relived at Kyra's statement.

"I am sorry for mistaking you as a human," Kyra added. "This rain is making it hard to smell anything."

"You thought I was human?" Riho asked in surprise.

She didn't mind the fact that she was mistaken as a human, and Kyra didn't seem as hostile as the vampire girl from the well had when she had fought Shido last night.

Kyra shrugged apologetically. "Most vampires don't like being compared to humans. Humans are food, so I see why they don't like the comparison, but some go a little too schizoid."

"I don't mind," Riho assured her, shaking off the chill from the note in Kyra's voice when she called humans food. "I'm Riho Yamazaki."

"Riho," Kyra repeated. "That's a pretty name. Is it the one from when you were human?"

Riho nodded, "Do vampires usually change their name?"

"It's the start of a new life," Kyra reminded Riho, "so there's nothing wrong with wanting a new name. Most who change their name usually forget their human one. I know that I have over the centuries."

"Centuries?" Riho asked with wide blue eyes.

The older a vampire was the more powerful they were, according to Shido-san. If she was centuries old she had to be powerful.

"Indeed," Kyra spoke in a voice more akin to a purr. "I apologize if I'm in your hunting grounds fledgling, but I'm looking for an old friend. Rumors say he lives near here."

"You're not in my hunting grounds," Riho assured her.

Riho didn't have hunting grounds since she didn't hunt humans. Yayoi provided her with any blood she needed.

Kyra narrowed her amber eyes slightly and stepped under Riho's umbrella, closer to her. She sniffed Riho's hair curiously, making Riho cringe. Then Kyra stepped back and apprised her again.

"Do you know a vampire named Shido Tatsuhiko?" Kyra asked in a more serious tone of voice then she had been using a moment ago.

"S-Shido?" Riho stuttered.

"Yes," Kyra repeated. "His scent is all over you."

Riho felt herself slowly turning red when Kyra said that and found she couldn't answer.

"That will be a yes," Kyra chuckled. "Could you take me to see him?"

"What business do you have with him?" Riho asked, shaking off her embarrassment.

She needed to be serious as this could be serious. This vampire might intend to kill Shido for the crown.

"I'm not going to kill Shido either," Kyra assured her.

Her words almost seemed to answer Riho's thoughts, and the timing of Kyra's statement startled Riho again. Cain unsettled Riho as well whenever he was near, and she wondered if all older vampires did that.

"Shido is a traitor who is aiding the humans in hunting his kin," Kyra reminded Riho. "He would never be acknowledged as vampire king because of that, so he is no threat to me. I simply want to ask him about his sire."

"Cain?" Riho said in surprise before she could stop herself.

"If you know who Shido's sire is then you must be very close to him," Kyra smiled as she thought the new information over. "I looked for Cain in Transylvania, but his castle is abandoned. Since I doubt he was killed I assume he moved, odd for a vampire."

"Why are you looking for Shido if that's the case?" Riho asked, trying to stand straight under the power in the older vampire's gaze that made her want to bow.

"The stories about Shido working with the humans are troubling," Kyra said seriously and looked away from Riho along the empty rain-pelted street. "It's likely Cain came here following those stories. In this case, if I find the fledgling I believe I will find his sire."

Riho hesitated, and Kyra softened her features and smiled. Even a fake smile, Kyra had learned, tended to put people at ease. The fledgling before her was young enough that she would still act and react to situations as a human would. It made it easy to get Riho to relax her shoulders.

"I have no feud with Shido at the moment," Kyra promised Riho, "only with Cain. If Cain is still acting as his usual self then he's probably a liability to Shido, right?"

Cain _had_ been getting in the way recently, Riho admitted to herself. He'd gotten into a fight with Shido and dislocated his arm last month. If it was only Cain Kyra wanted to kill then Riho supposed she could take her to Shido.

"I can take you to where he is," Riho offered finally. "It's not far from here."

"Thank you," Kyra smiled appreciatively.

Riho held out her umbrella as an offering to Kyra, but Kyra shook her head. As Riho led her back in the direction of Shido's office, the rain began to lighten to a soft mist. By the time they entered the building, it had all but stopped.

Riho shook water droplets off her umbrella, and Kyra shook her head to dispel the water from her long, thin bangs that framed her face. It was a little surprising to Riho that after Kyra shook her head her entire body was dry, but Kyra only smiled at her confusion. It must be a trick only older vampires knew, Riho thought to herself as she walked to Shido's office and knocked.

"Come in," Shido's voice called out.

Riho turned the doorknob and walked inside, announcing as she entered. "Shido-san, you have a guest."

Shido had the file on the vampire killings from this month scattered on the surface of his desk, and Guni ducked into his hair when Riho opened the door. There was no sign of Yayoi. When they entered, Shido looked up.

His expression was neutral, welcoming even, in anticipation of a human, until Kyra stepped into the office. He froze when he saw her walk in, and Kyra raised her amber-gold eyes to him with a smile. Before Shido could do more than jump to his feet, Kyra grabbed the collar of Riho's shirt and dragged her back. Riho gave a small gasp as she stepped back so she was against Kyra's chest, and Kyra grabbed Riho by her throat, fingernails sharpening like knives.

Shido froze when the sharp fingernails were set against Riho's throat. Kyra looked back up at Shido with another smile.

"Sit," she warned Shido. "I have something I want to ask you about."

Shido hesitated, and then slowly sat back down.

"Good boy," Kyra smiled and stepped inside the office without loosening her grip on Riho, the door closing behind her on its own. "This little one here is your fledgling, isn't she? You made her."

She tilted her head close to her neck as if she was going to bite Riho, and Shido tensed. Kyra stopped before she bit her however and straightened her stance.

"Calm down Shido," she scolded him as if it was wrong of him to act so serious. "I have no feud with you or your fledgling."

"Then why are you holding Riho with those crazy nails?" Guni demanded in a fuming voice as she shot out from Shido's hair.

"Because if I didn't, Shido would have jumped over his desk at me," Kyra pointed out bluntly. "Knowing him, he won't dare fight me while I have a hostage, so this way saves us both time. I just want to talk."

"Guni," Shido said softly before Guni could snip something else at Kyra. "Please be quiet."

Guni gave him a dumbfounded look, and blinked her big reddish eyes at him. Shido nodded at her and Guni fell quiet, arms crossed her breasts. Her quiet relieved Shido, for he knew Kyra would not hesitate to kill her if she got annoyed.

"What do you want to talk to me about, Kyra?" Shido asked her, voice forcibly neutral and muscles tense.

"You do remember me," Kyra smiled with a tilt of her head. "I was a little unsure since you only met me once back at Cain's castle."

"How do you know Shido?" Guni demanded in a hostile tone.

Kyra glanced her way, and narrowed her eyes, pupils sharpening to cat-like slits as they sharpened to vampire gold. Shido reached out a hand and uncharacteristically grabbed Guni out of the air as he panicked. Guni gave a little yelp as Shido tightened his fingers around her form and held her out of sight under the desk. A breeze ruffled his bangs, and Kyra's eyes returned to normal.

"Oh?" She chuckled. "You have better reflexes then you had at Cain's castle. That little imp should be grateful you just saved her life."

Guni had been struggling and starting to shout at Shido asking what he was doing, but now hesitated when she heard Kyra's words. Shido had saved her life? That gust of wind had been more than a random breeze then.

"Why would you kill Guni?" Riho asked.

"Because she was annoying me," Kyra sighed as if it was obvious. "I can kill a low-level breed like her with a blink of my eyes, literally. Shido moved her out of the way though, so I missed. Not that I was trying too hard anyway."

Kyra smiled at Shido in amusement when Shido didn't release Guni. Guni was going to squirm free when she realized that Shido's hand was shaking. Shido, Guni thought as she looked up at his set features, Shido was scared of this vampire?

"It appears you remember the lesson I gave you back when you lived with Cain," Kyra smiled.

"Lesson?" Riho asked. "What lesson? What did you do to him?"

Kyra shrugged, amazed at how chatty the fledgling she had was. "I don't know what he's like now, but when he lived with Cain he was an insolent, disrespectful, petty, and strong-willed little brat. Cain's castle is in Transylvania close to the vampire king's, so other vampires often visited him as they came and went from the king."

"You were one of them," Shido agreed. "Cain was worried about your presence near me."

"For good reason," Kyra giggled, and covered her mouth with the hand that was not keeping Riho pinned in place. "You didn't like seeing your sire bow before another vampire, so you took it upon yourself to put me in my place so Cain wouldn't have to bow, so protective of your sire. Except you weren't strong enough to even touch me."

"You hurt him," Riho whispered.

"I taught him the value of respecting those with more power than him," Kyra agreed and glanced down at Riho.

Shido remembered that experience painfully well. Cain had helped nurse him back to health afterwards, but he hadn't done anything to stop Kyra. It was one of the first times Shido doubted his sire, and possibly the start of Shido drifting away from Cain.

"Where _is_ Cain by the way, Shido?" Kyra asked slyly with a sideways look at him.

"I don't know," Shido replied honestly.

"I know he's in Yokohama," Kyra warned and tightened her grip on Riho enough that a drop of blood ran down her throat where her nails cut. "Don't foolishly protect of your sire a second time."

"I'm not," Shido said quickly in a somewhat desperate tone, not wanting Kyra to hurt Riho. "I don't know where he is. He has shown up a few times, but I have no idea where he's staying."

Kyra apprised him for a few seconds, eyes sharpening into vampire ones, and then she sighed. "That's unfortunate."

She moved her fingers on Riho's throat, and Shido first thought was that she was going to slice Riho's throat open or behead her. He released Guni and started to stand, but Kyra unexpectedly lowered her hand from Riho's throat and pushed the fledgling in Shido's direction. Shido quickly stood and pulled Riho protectively close to him.

Kyra retracted her fingernails back to their usual length and ran her hand through her thin bangs nonchalantly. "I was hoping you'd be able to give me a lead on his location."

Guni flew over by Shido, and looked at Riho with a frustrated expression. A bit of Riho's blood had gotten on Kyra's hand, and she licked it off as she crossed her other arm over her chest, slouching her stance. Shido forced himself to stay calm.

"You haven't happened to see a vampire that looks just like me but with longer hair?" Kyra asked nonchalantly.

"You mean your sister Lilith?" Shido asked.

"Oh oh," Kyra said as if impressed, "you know her. Considering the history between her and Cain, I'm surprised he told you about her."

"History?" Shido said in confusion.

"He never mentioned it?" Kyra queried innocently, and then sighed. "Honestly, he's as bad as she is."

Shido felt a little defensive unexpectedly at her insulting tone of voice when she mentioned Cain, but he forced himself to calm down.

"Cain is very arrogant, even for a vampire, but Lilith scared him," Kyra relished her words and the confusion Shido wore. "You're luckier then you know to have been Cain's fledgling."

Shido stepped in front of Riho. "I already said I don't know where Cain is, and I haven't seen anyone matching Lilith's description."

"Well," Kyra said in an accepting tone. "I suppose I'll have to keep looking for Cain myself. Slower progress than expected, but I'll have to make do."

With that, she turned on her heel and walked from the office with her hands tucked into her jean's pockets. Shido's door opened at her approach on its own, and then closed softly when she left. When she did not return, Shido exhaled in soft relief.

"Shido-san," Riho asked softly, not minding Shido's arm draped around her shoulders. "What was that all about?"

"She's looking for Cain," Shido repeated. "The Hunters have killed many of the older vampires, so Cain is likely one of the oldest ones alive. Unless I'm wrong, Kyra probably thinks he's a threat for the crown she wants and is going to kill him."

"Aren't you going to warn him?" Riho asked Shido seriously.

"Warn him?" Shido shook his head. "Hardly."

"But she's going to kill him!" Riho demanded when Shido stepped away from her.

"Riho," Shido told her patiently. "I have no way to contact him even if I wanted to. Besides, he's not easy to kill."

He remembered when he had beheaded Cain on the Bay Bridge shortly before siring Riho. Cain had reappeared without as much as a scar on his neck from Shido's effort. Far more important then what _might_ happen to _Cain_ was the matter of who became the next king.

Shido sighed and looked at his desk full of photos of the people the vampires had been killing. "I hope that whoever becomes the next king that it is not Kyra, for this world's sake."

* * *

 **Kind of sudden appearance i suppose, but Kyra has a somewhat sudden personality. I find it hard to believe the NOS are the only ones out there working large-scale on stopping nightbreeds, and now they're not. They're like the brand-new government funded organization trying to get the feel for killing nightbreeds, and the Association is the mysterious group that works without government knowledge and are centuries old.**


	3. The Vampire Hunter Association

Yayoi was one of the NOS operatives present in the conference room when Stefan Lupei, the representative of the Vampire Hunter Association, began speaking. He was in his late 30's with a tall and muscular build and had long, wavy jet-black hair that reached to his shoulders with blue eyes. Unlike the NOS agents, he dressed casually in a windbreaker zipped up to shield against the chilly breeze, along with jeans, gloves, and boots. There were no weapons in sight. A silver cross was around his neck, garnets on the tips of his arm and the cross covered with scratches. Each scratch supposedly represented one vampire he had killed.

"Chairman Tao," Lupei greeted the Chairman of the NOS neutrally.

If Yayoi remembered correctly, Lupei was an A-Grade Vampire Hunter, and A-Grades were supposedly able to kill a vampire solo. He was one of the commanders of the Association and had the authority to speak directly for Abraham van Helsing, their leader. While the Association was based in Romania and Europe, the NOS was under the jurisdiction of the Japanese government.

Normally, the Association hunted the vampires and the NOS took care of the lesser nightbreeds. The two groups had the same goal, to eliminate the nightbreeds, but they had very different ways to do that. Since they often clashed, they normally kept out of each other's way.

"Lupei," Tao returned the greeted. "It's not often the Association sends an A-Grade hunter to speak to the NOS. What do you wish to tell us about?"

"Are you aware about the situation with the vampire king?" Lupei asked, unsure if the NOS was competent enough to have figured that out.

"Yes," Tao nodded, "we are up to date on those events."

"Good," Lupei was glad he wouldn't have to explain himself.

He unzipped his jacket, and Yayoi saw that not only did he have a pistol of some sort holstered under his left arm there were a pair of daggers as well. One of the key differences in NOS and Association ideology was that while the NOS had their agents armed with silver-coated bullets, the Association despised guns. They were far older then the NOS, dating back nearly five centuries, and to them guns were temporary sidearms at best. Their weapons were swords or other melee weapons edged with silver. The fact that he had a gun at all was surprising.

Lupei walked to where Tao sat as he withdrew two pictures from inside his jacket and set them in front of the leader of the NOS. "Have you seen these vampires? We have reason to believe they're here instead of Transylvania."

The Chairman looked over the photos and shook his head, passing them to the right as he spoke. "I'm afraid their images haven't shown up on any of the case files. Who are they?"

"Twin vampire sisters Kyra and Lilith," Lupei answered. "They're between five and six centuries old, and the two main contenders for the vampire crown. They are the only two fledgligns of the previous vampire king, and vampires respect their bloodline. Unless something changes one of them will almost assuredly become the next king."

"Not friendly vampires then I take it," Tao mused as the photos were passed to Yayoi.

"They're vampires," Lupei reminded.

Yayoi took the photos and looked them over. The sisters looked like twins in their late-teens, maybe nineteen years old when they had been sired. They both had honey gold hair, although the one with the name Kyra wore hers short and braided back while Lilith wore hers long and free. Yayoi didn't like the look either of them had as she passed the photos to Lieutenant Hayashi Seiji.

"One is blood-crazed and the other power-hungry," Lupei explained grimly. "It will end badly for us humans if either of them becomes the new king, especially Lilith."

"You sound like you're speaking from experience," Arai Kyuichi, Tao's second-in-command, said. "Has the Association dealt with them before?"

"Yes," Lupei admitted, "with Lilith at least. We don't know much about Kyra, but Lilith is a reoccurring menace who seems to enjoy taunting us."

"I'm sorry," Arai interrupted, "But your chief is Abraham van Helsing, correct? Didn't he and his younger brother form the Association five hundred years ago?"

"He did," Lupei agreed.

His response made the NOS tense up.

"The chief of the vampire hunters is a vampire?" One of the NOS agents mused. "I thought that was just a story."

Lupei shook his head. "It's true. Van Helsing has been killing vampires for the past five centuries, ever since he was sired. Only once he's the last vampire in existence will he allow himself to die, and have the species die with him."

Working under a vampire _did_ take some getting used to, but the Hunters managed it or they didn't. If they didn't adapt then they were free to be rogue hunters instead of Association members, but as rogues they shouldn't expect support from the Association. Most didn't last long by themselves.

"Also," Lupei added and handed a sheet of paper to Tao. "Have you seen this vampire? I doubt he looks exactly like he does in the sketch, but we believe he is in Yokohama as well."

Tao looked over the photo and then passed it to Arai beside him again.

"Vampire?" Arai said in surprise once he got the picture. "This man looks like a vampire hunter, one of your association."

"He was," Lupei agreed, "until Lilith sired him. He was actually one of the ones who founded the Association with Helsing back when they were both human. A vampire had killed their parents."

Arai raised an eyebrow.

"We've tracked Kyra here," Lupei continued speaking, "and we think she's trying to find him. He is Lilith's fledgling, a vampire made with her blood. Kyra might be planning to recruit him to help her kill Lilith."

"Use the sire's blood in the fledgling's veins to weaken the sire," Tao quoted. "Isn't that a tactic of the Association?"

"One of the tricks to help us kill vampire that we learned," Lupei crossed his arms over his chest. "Lilith is also hunting for him, although she'll be doing it to kill him so his blood can't be used to weaken her."

"And because he is here both sister are coming, and they're all going to cross paths here." Tao simplified. "Is that what you're saying?"

"We believe it's likely," Lupei nodded." Which is why I am here, and why Helsing would like me to stay."

Arai passed the photo of the vampire hunter that Lilith had sired to Yayoi and she took it. It wasn't an actual photograph so much as picture of a lifelike sketch, and it showed a man in his late thirties wearing the black clothing and leather armor of the Association. He had long blonde hair tied back with a ribbon and bright green eyes. There was a sheathed saber on his side and a dagger mounted beside it, both with crossguards shaped like a set of feather wings. The symbol of the Association, a side view of a dove in flight, was stitched onto the collar of his black long-sleeve shirt. He wore a silver cross around his neck on a chain, and his smile was warm, eyes bright and friendly.

Yayoi had also seen him before. With a different set of clothes, cold gold eyes, and no saber or cross, he looked lot like a certain vampire who had been brothering Shido of late. She passed the picture of the sketch to Lieutenant Hayashi Seiji before she gave herself away.

"After he became a vampire, he killed half of the current Hunters and left the Association," Lupei continued speaking about the vampire in the sketch. "Now he goes by the name Cain."

"What did he call himself before he was sired?" Arai asked.

"That's not important," Lupei waved his hand. "I doubt he even remembers his human name now. Cain has mostly stayed out of the Association's way ever since he left, but it seems at last he is going to pay for killing almost a hundred of us."

Yayoi kept her expression neutral as she listened to Lupei speak about Cain. It would not be a good idea for the Association to find out that she was in contact with a vampire like Shido, and it would be even worse if they found out Shido was Cain's fledgling. A fledgling could be used against their sire, and it would make Shido a target. It was odd Shido had never mentioned Cain had used to be a member of the Association, but maybe he hadn't known.

"We're certain that Cain is Lilith's target," Lupei continued confidently, "We've caught her killing her fledglings before, and we believe Cain is the only fledgling of hers still alive. He's the last one she needs to kill to eliminate a very potent weakness."

"What do you want us to do?" Tao asked amicably, making Arai glare at him a little for his neutral tone.

"The NOS doesn't have the training to defeat a vampire as old as Cain or the twins," Lupei assured them. "We need to capture Cain before Lilith kills him, or Kyra recruits him. Kyra would need all of his blood to weaken Lilith as much as possible and without his blood he'll be as weak as a human. I doubt she'll leave him alive so he'll be dead regardless of which sister finds him."

"And you want to save him?" Arai asked sharply.

"He needs to answer for his crimes," Lupei said darkly.

"You need him alive, and no matter which twin gets him he's going to end up dead," Tao chuckled. "I can see the conflict of interest. I don't believe we have any information on Cain or the twins, but you are free to look through our records to see if they are there. We'll help you in any way we can."

"Thank you for your cooperation on this matter," Lupei dipped his head and did something akin to a bow. "Capturing Cain will be of great assistance to us, and with him as bait, we might be able to eliminate both Kyra and Lilith."

The meeting was ended, and Yayoi left with the other agents. She was troubled now, aware that Shido could easily be dragged into this hunt. Yayoi was now relieved neither she nor Shido had ever told the NOS who his sire was, Shido deeming it unnecessary information – just how he never told them Riho was a vampire. Tao must not have mentioned Shido's presence at all, which was fortunate as the Association's policy was total genocide of the vampire species.

As much as Yayoi wanted to warn Shido what was going on with his sire, she had to stay at headquarters while copies of the three pictures were made for her. When she did get ahold of the pictures she looked at Cain's again. He was one of the founders of the Vampire Hunter Association? Like Shido then he had worked to protect humans from nightbreeds. This was certainly something to ask Shido about.

* * *

Tao motioned for Arai to stay behind when everyone else left, including Lupei. "Why are you so hostile?"

"Why are you giving the Association control?" Arai demanded. "This is _our_ headquarters, and a bunch of vagabond vigilantes hardly have more jurisdiction then us."

"They might not have more jurisdiction," Tao agreed, "but they have a much higher number of kills."

"And if the rumors are right?" Arai asked tartly.

"That the Association's hunters are strong enough to kill vampires because they've drank vampire blood?" Tao asked curiously. "What if they are? The NOS has only been around for a few decades, and we are still having trouble killing low-level breeds while _they_ are killing _vampires_. We have much to learn about dealing with nightwalkers and they are willing to teach us. We're lucky."

"Lucky?" Arai scoffed, "a bunch of primitive fools who still fight with swords like they're the knights of old."

"Yet they still have hundreds if not thousands of vampire kills," Tao reminded in a tone with slackening patience. "The NOS has maybe one or two."

"Why didn't you tell them about Shido Tatsuhiko?" Arai demanded.

"Because he is an ally and a valuable asset to the NOS," Tao dismissed, "even if he is a vampire. Should he stop being an ally then the Association can deal with him, but until that happens I won't have him killed. He's saved many lives."

"You sound like you trust him," Arai said in exasperation. "He's a _vampire_."

"So is the leader of the Vampire Hunters," Tao reminded him and set his hand on the handle of the door to leave. "By the way, what is the status of Mrs. Megumi and her son?"

Arai didn't appreciate the subject being changed so abruptly, but relayed the answer. "Mrs. Megumi has recently moved back into the area with her son, apparently for a job and because of arguments with her parents. Her son Ryuichi, who may or may not be a half-nightbreed, is with her. If he is a crossbreed there are still no signs of it. He appears to be a normal human child."

"Keep them under surveillance," Tao ordered, "but nothing more until we know for certain whether the son was conceived before or after his father became a nightbreed."

He opened the door to the conference hall, signaling that the conversation was at an end, and walked out. Arai looked after the Chairman of the NOS dangerously as the door swung closed with a soft click. Just because Tao had walked away did _not_ mean this conversation was over.

* * *

 **Since this story is centered more on vampires and their mayhem then other nightbreeds, the Association (also simply called Hunters) will play a large role. As Shido is working under the NOS's protection and they are keeping him a secret from the Association they will also have a roll. Everyone's wondered about Shido's past but did anyone think about Cain's?**

 **As I said in chapter 1, when i watched the anime and they said Bay Bridge I thought they meant the San Francisco Bay Bridge. They meant the Yokohama Bay Bridge. Since I was working under the delusion this took place in America, Tao was originally named Hart and Arai called Fiske. Those are American names. I changed them.**


	4. Led By a Child

Shido sat behind his desk, looking at the photos of Lilith and Kyra Yayoi had just brought. Guni was hovering in midair near him, and Riho nervously making coffee. They were still shaken from Kyra's attack. Yayoi finished telling Shido about the meeting with the Hunter from the Association, and the news about the twins being present.

"So Lilith is Cain's sire," Shido repeated. "Lilith is also Kyra's sister, and since they are some of the oldest vampires left one of them will likely become the next king."

He didn't know about Lilith since he hadn't met her before, but now there was almost a 50% chance that Kyra would become king. That scared him a little. Because a fledgling could be used against their sire, Cain was a major target to both Kyra and Lilith. Shido curled his fingers to his palms, trying to figure out how to react to that news. He hadn't even known the name of Cain's sire until Yayoi had told him.

"They talked about Cain quite a bit," Yayoi went on. "Apparently, before Cain became a vampire he was a member of the Association and one of its founding members."

Shido's head jerked up when Yayoi said that and he asked rapidly, "Cain hunted vampires to protect the humans?"

Yayoi took the third photo of Cain as a human from her jacket and handed it to Shido. "Here, the hunter brought this. It's a picture of Cain back when he was human."

Shido hesitated as he took the photo, hand grabbing it but not taking it from Yayoi. He took the photo finally and looked at it, at Cain's smile, and was amazed. He had never seen Cain smile like that. When someone became a vampire, their personality either remained mostly the same or changed drastically. Abraham van Helsing's had remained the same and he continued to this day to lead the hunters, but like most vampires, it seemed Cain had changed.

"I really don't know anything about him," Shido whispered and held the picture still so Guni could float over and look at it. "I though Cain didn't remember his human life like me, but with such extensive records him probably does. I don't even know my human name."

Kyra's words suddenly came back to Shido. _"You're luckier then you know to have been Cain's fledgling."_ Maybe if Cain had still smiled like that after he had become a vampire aybe Shido wouldn't have left him, but Kyra was wrong. Being Cain's fledgling was nothing but trouble, and that trouble was continuing. Shido sighed as he looked at the picture, and wondered what his life would have been like if Cain hadn't lost that warm smile when he became a vampire.

Yayoi must have been able to tell that Shido was starting to sulk because she spoke up.

"Oh," Yayoi remembered. "It wasn't mentioned directly in the meeting, but I've heard that Mrs. Megumi has moved back to Yokohama with her son."

"Megumi-san?" Riho asked as she walked back in with some coffee for Shido and a smile, having heard every word of the conversation because of her vampire hearing. "She's back with Ryuichi?"

Yayoi had thought the news might cheer Shido up like it did Riho, but he didn't smile. Instead, he seemed to darken even more and set Cain's old picture on his desk. He recalled Cain's ramblings about the _Golden Dawn_ , a fantasy story among the nightbreeds. Was it really fantasy?

A new vampire king needed to be crowned, and now a child that might be a crossbreed had appeared in the same place as where the two strongest competitors were. Was it coincidence, or was the child really going to usher in a new age in while Kyra and Lilith clashed? Would the new vampire king be crowned here and now?

"Is Ryuichi a crossbreed?" Shido asked with a slight hiss to his voice.

"The NOS doesn't know for certain," Yayoi said softly, unsure why Shido was suddenly so antsy. "He's acting like a normal boy up until now, and there's no way to tell. Why?"

"To vampires, a crossbreed child does not signify the dawn of a new age," Shido said softly. "A half-nightbreed child is the one who crowns a new vampire king."

Yayoi thought about it and then nodded that she understood. "And as all the nightbreeds answer to a new king it means a new age."

"The Golden Dawn," Shido whispered. "The new age of the nightbreeds. It might happen seven years later then Cain planned, but I think it's going to happen, here and now."

"The Golden Dawn," Yayoi repeated while Riho furrowed her brows together. "What is it Shido? It is just something Cain made up?"

" _No_ ," Shido assured her and leaned back in his chair, "far from it. Cain told me about it as a fledgling, and it's a sort of fairytale known among nightbreeds."

"A nightbreed's fairy tale?" Yayoi crossed her arms over her chest. "I'm not going to like it, am I?"

Shido shook his head that she would not. "According to the story, the Golden Dawn is the start of a new era for this world, or more specifically, of the nightbreeds. The Golden Dawn is a golden age for nightbreeds that is brought around by a new vampire king. To put it simply, the humans no longer rule both day and night. In fact, they are no longer the dominate species. They are ruled by the nightbreeds, as livestock for vampires and hosts for all the nightbreeds. Whether it is day or night, that standing does not change."

Yayoi swallowed. "That was what Cain was trying to make with Ryuichi?"

"That's the story," Shido repeated. "I don't know when Vladimir Tepes, the last vampire king, died, so I can't say when the race began for a new vampire king. It's possible he died before Ryuichi was born, and since only a crossbreed can crown a new king Cain decided to make one. Maybe he was hoping he'd be the one crowned."

Cain as the vampire king. Oh stars, Shido didn't want to think about that happening. If Cain became king then he'd suppress the humans and create the Golden Dawn without a care about how many he killed. Enslavement… that was what the Golden Dawn meant for the humans.

Cain wanted to make the Golden Dawn reality instead of myth, and as long as that was his wish there was no way Shido could return to his side. A part of him longed to go back to his sire and to the blissful days of Transylvania, but he couldn't. Cain was going to end up as the target of two elder vampires, and wouldn't survive no matter which one caught him, but there was nothing Shido could do even if he wanted to help him, which he didn't. As long as Cain's mission didn't change, Shido would never stop fighting him.

He looked down at the sketch of Cain as a human, lost in thought. Silence fell for a few dangerous seconds and Riho chewed her lip.

Then she asked softly. "What do you mean Ryuichi was born seven years ago?"

"Riho," Yayoi smiled, glad for a distraction. "It's been seven years since Ryuichi was born. I guess it's easy for you to lose track of time now."

Riho set the coffee on Shido's desk and he distractedly said thanks. She nodded, but didn't respond. Because she didn't age anymore time did sort of just slip past her. Yayoi did look older now that Riho glanced at her, and Riho was surprised she hadn't realized it earlier. Seven years had passed since she had become a vampire, and her human friends from school were likely in college or graduated. The thought sobered her, and she excused herself back into the kitchen.

Guni looked between Shido and Riho and looked up at Yayoi in annoyance. "Now look what you did. They're both sulking."

* * *

In another part of Yokohama, Mrs. Megumi was starting to cook dinner while her son sat on the couch and read a picture book. He looked out the window at the setting sun curiously, knowing that soon the vampires would come out. Soon the battle would resume.

Kyra and Lilith were both in the city, as well their mutual target. The Association's presence might make things difficult, but would also make things interesting. Whoever was the strongest became king, and now the vampires who wished for the crown would have to fight the Hunters nourished on Abraham Van Helsing's blood as well as their kin.

Whoever became king this time was going to be stronger than usual. That was good. Perhaps the next king would finally put these humans in their proper place in the food chain – below the nightbreeds. He could only hope. Ryuichi kicked the heels of his bare feet on the sofa as he thought. His soft brown eyes shimmered an unnatural crimson as he watched the sun set and he smiled. Before long, one vampire would stand above the rest, having won the right to rule, and he would crown them. In fact, unless his feeling was wrong, it would happen in less than a month.

"Ryuichi!" His mother called amid a clatter of dishes, "dinner is ready!"

"Yes mother!" Ryuichi responded.

The red in his eyes vanished as he set the book down and hopped off the sofa. He ran into the kitchen with a smile, glad that it was time to eat because he was feeling a little hungry.

* * *

 **A shorter chapter, but the next one shall make up for it. Now the plot is set, the characters reintroduced (or introduced if they're new), and the fight begins. Now the sisters begin to fight, with each other and over Cain, whose blood may determine the next ruler (and of course, Cain's going to try to become king himself). You know how Cain is if you've watched the anime - as you should have! Better pray he doesn't win.**


	5. Reunion

That night, Cain licked blood off his lips as he stood on the peak of a roof that overlooked Yokohama. This city had a plentiful supply of humans for him to feed off from, more so then Transylvania. The thought, like most of his thoughts, brought back the reality that he was here instead of home because he had lost his fledgling.

Shido, Cain sighed silently and looked up to the full moon in the clear sky.

He sensed more than heard someone approach him, and Cain turned. He foolishly expected it to be Shido but of it was not, of course. There was a female vampire in her late-teens walked across the peak of the roof towards him. Her long golden blonde hair hung freely around her shoulders, and she was dressed in a pair of knee-high boots and a short sleeveless violet dress with white knee-length leggings.

She smiled when Cain turned and her gold cat eyes seemed to glow in the dim light. His first instinct was that it was Kyra, but then he felt the connection. This was a tie of blood that only existed between a fledgling and their sire. It was a vampire he hadn't seen in centuries.

"Lilith," Cain whispered in a soft voice.

Although her loose bangs hid her eyes and upper face, he was still able to see her smile. Cain remembered that smile and fell into a fighting stance out of instinct. He would rather it be Kyra then Lilith, and he dug his fingernails into his palm in preparation to draw a blood weapon. Kyra was sane at least.

The centuries older vampire that stood before him cooed at his aggressive movement as if she was a dove and held her arms out to him as if asking him to come and give her a hug. "I see you still remember me despite the time that has passed. Can't you greet your sire a little warmer? I came all the way from Transylvania to see you after all, Andrei."

Cain tensed and let his fingernails cut into his palm when Lilith called him by his old name, the name he had back when he was a human. He did not move towards her, and after a few seconds Lilith lowered her arms and sighed.

"Well your human stubbornness has survived intact," Lilith chuckled. "I suppose it's how you are. You hunt for pleasure and I hunt for fun, not that there is a difference. I never understood why it bothered you so much."

"Why are you here?" Cain asked Lilith seriously without saying her name, a very insulting thing to do to the one who had given him immortality.

"I'm looking for you," Lilith shrugged innocently and turned away from him to overlook the city without worry of an attack from him. "I went to your castle back home in Transylvania, but I couldn't find you. It wasn't easy for me to track you all the way out here."

"I know why you're here," Cain promised Lilith.

"Oh?" Lilith asked and glanced back at him without turning her head.

"I'm a threat to the king-to-be," Cain said simply.

Lilith tensed and then relaxed. "Using a fledgling against their sire is an Association trick, so I suppose I can't be surprised you know it. It was wise of you to abandon your home once you learned Vladimir Tepes was dead."

"Oh?" Cain challenged, raising an eyebrow. "I heard you were the one who killed him."

"I did," Lilith agreed. "There is only room for one on the throne after all, though Kyra took my slaying of our sire so _personally_." She clicked her tongue, more bemused then annoyed. "You're the last of my fledglings still alive Andrei, and the last one I need to kill."

Cain held out the hand his fingernails had cut, and a one-handed saber of blood crystalized in his palm. He tightened his grip on the hilt, and the blood that made up the saber's crossguard formed into a set of feather wings. Lilith would never change, and this was why Cain couldn't stand her. His sire looked more amused then anything when Cain pointed the tip of the saber at her with a vicious look.

"A sire protects their fledglings, Lilith!" Cain demanded in a harsh voice surprisingly loud, his ordinarily calm demeanor splintering. "They don't hunt them like humans! A fledgling is the same as our child. They might stray into the sun and be burned by its light, but it is our duty as their sire, their maker, to protect them and help them!"

"Now you're starting to sound like my sister," Lilith tssked, "and Kyra has never even sired a fledgling."

Now that Lilith thought about it, she was surprised that Kyra hadn't shown herself yet. Despite never having a fledgling, Kyra had to know she could use Cain's blood, Lilith's blood, against Lilith. The fact that she hadn't appeared yet disquieted Lilith and it left her to wonder exactly what her sister was planning.

"Your saber from when you used to be a vampire hunter," Lilith mused and tipped her head at his formed blade, finally turning back to face him. "I suppose I broke the original right before I sired you, and after that you no longer needed a metal blade."

That memory was still a little raw for Cain, and being reminded of it was enough to make him bite his teeth together. Forgetting his usual calmness, he sprang at her without a plan as if he were Shido, acting on emotion alone. It was foolish, and Lilith smiled as she managed to make him snap. In some ways he was still very human.

She sidestepped his swing, bending backwards at an unnatural angle and watching the blade almost skim the bridge of her nose. Cain didn't even register that his strike had missed before Lilith had counterstruck, and he didn't even realize she had moved until her punch connected with him. The strength behind it as it hit his cheek knocked him off his feet and away several buildings. It was through experience and luck that Cain slid backwards across the roof of a building that he managed not to fall off it although he couldn't stay on his feet. Lilith was still the fastest vampire in the Sabbath.

Lilith closed the distance and landed in front of him as Cain lay on his stomach, trying to call his senses back to him with his saber in hand.

"Oh?" Lilith hummed. "You managed to keep ahold of your saber."

Cain was on his feet suddenly, delivering a vicious uppercut that should have gone through Lilith lower jaw and skewed her head. Lilith slammed her hand against the blade, burns from touching the acidic blood of the sword healing instantly as she spun and landing a sidekick in the center of Cain's chest. This time Cain's saber slid away from him as he tumbled to a stop on the roof of a building.

"You're reflexes have slowed though," Lilith sighed as she jumped and landed in front of him again. "Your first fledgling betrayed you by killing your second and then trying to kill you, so I suppose I can understand why you've let your skill wane. It's not like you could defeat me anyway. A vampire's strength stems from two things, and I win in both."

Cain rematerialized another blade and struck at her, but Lilith caught it on a metal dagger she drew from her belt, locking the blood blade to the dagger's crossguard shaped like a pair of feather wings. Lilith smiled as the silver in the dagger, it being the weapon of a Vampire Hunter, began to dissolve Cain's saber back into liquid blood. The two began to pass blows, and Cain's strikes became more exact as he calmed his temper.

He jumped away from Lilith, and she did the same, raising the dagger into an attack position with a smile that promised she would enjoy what was to come. Cain's black cape had a tear in it. Cain jumped at her with his saber, and Lilith leapt into the air to meet him. When they clashed, the air rippled outward in a small shockwave and there was a distinctive clang. In an instant they passed by each other, landed, and then attacked again.

"First," Lilith said as she clashed again and cut his cheek, still using the dagger instead of being bothered to materialize a weapon of her own. "A vampire's strength depends on the purity of blood. The older and greater the bloodline, the stronger the vampire inherently is. Since it is my blood you are descended from, your blood is a step diluted of mine, inferior."

They clashed again, and Lilith suddenly slipped her blade into a reverse grip and stabbed Cain between the ribs. She jaggedly tore the blade free as she passed by him, and Cain's landing was fumbled. Vampires normally healed quickly, although the exact rate of recovery depended on their strengths. Silver hampered nightbreed's regenerative abilities however and poisoned the blood.

"Second," Lilith said calmly as Cain raised his saber again, knowing that there was nothing he could do to quicken the healing besides getting fresh blood in his systems and deciding to ignore the wound. "A vampire's strength depends on their age. No matter how pure their blood is, a vampire gets stronger and unlocks more abilities the older they are. Vampire's don't normally sire a fledgling until they're a century old and I am almost two centuries your senior."

Lilith raised her dagger in a reverse grip as Cain struck and stopped his attack when the saber crashed into the dagger, arm not even strained despite Cain's strength. "That is why fledglings don't kill their sires."

"You killed yours," Cain snapped.

He had to jump to another building to avoid a retaliatory attack by her as she showed a little venom at his comment. It wasn't quite fast enough as the silver dagger tore his throat open. Since he wasn't human, it wasn't a kill hit, Cain ignored it.

"So what?" Lilith asked and tossed her head, making her long hair ripple with the movement. "He might have sired both Kyra and I, but it was obvious he loved my sister more and intended to have her succeed him as king should something happen. Now here you are causing a hassle for me."

"You expect me to let you kill me without a fight?" Cain challenged.

"If you know what to do, a vampire can be killed as easily as a human." Lilith chastised him, aware that as a former vampire hunter Cain would be well trained to how to kill his kin.

Cain remembered how Shido had decapitated him, but decapitation could not kill a vampire as old as him. Shido hadn't know that.

"Kyra's hasn't forgiven me for killing Vladimir," Lilith mused and looked away. "That's probably why she's trying to become king so badly, just to spite me. I can see her doing that, power hungry bitch she is."

Cain finally managed to surprise her as he leaped at her. Although she parried his strike with his saber he managed to land a solid hit with a punch, and knocked her head back. His golden eyes slowly widened in surprise when Lilith didn't stumble. She smiled, and turned back towards him with Cain's fist still on her cheek, any damage healing instantly.

"I see the silver's doing its job," Lilith remarked. "It does more than hamper your healing. Your body focuses so much energy on neutralizing the toxin it doesn't have much energy leftover for strength. Honestly Cain, you are so out of practice. I haven't even been pushed to the point where I need to materialize a blood blade. You might not be my oldest fledglings, but I thought you would be one of my strongest. I've kept an eye on you ever since you were a small human."

Lilith held out a hand about the height of her waist, mimicking how tall Cain had been when she had first found him. Then she used that hand to hit him with a vicious palm strike to his throat. It slammed him to the ground, and Lilith put her foot on Cain's throat before he could get back up.

"With such a large amount of such high quality silver in your veins you're hardly stronger than a human right now," Lilith held up the dagger with a smile. "This is very fine workmanship, and the perfect companion for a hunter."

Cain started to struggle, and Lilith kicked his saber away from his hand with a tssk.

"Stay down," she snapped at Cain as she applied enough pressure to damage his spine. "Don't you understand? You are _my_ fledgling. _I_ am the one who gave you immortal life. Your life is mine. To sustain or destroy, a fledgling obeys the wishes of their sire! _Always_! Their will does not come into it."

Lilith's thinking was starting to fray again, and Cain's thoughts picked an inopportune moment to flash back to Transylvania. It was the night of a full moon and he had just tracked his fledgling to the roof of his castle. When Cain had found him, Shido had taken the ribbon out of his hair and was sitting under the moonlight, relaxing in the gentle spring breeze that ruffled his light purple long locks. Shido must have sensed Cain's presence through the blood tie because he turned towards him. When he had seen Cain, Shido had smiled in his usual bright way, and waved at him.

"You're wrong," Cain said softly.

Lilith smiled at him and then punched his chest, snapping ribs inwards and making him cough up a mouthful of blood. "You just don't know when to shut up, do you? After your fledgling and your human allies among the Vampire Association betrayed you, you came to _me_ for training and then you left when you felt like it. Never once were you able to defeat me in sparring, and yet you challenge me now despite being so weakened by silver's blight you're hardly stronger than a _human_? A fledgling should learn their place is at their sire's feet."

Lilith knelt down and raised the silver dagger over him in reverse grip for a killing strike.

"You're wrong," Cain repeated as she brought the dagger down.

Blood splattered across the roof as the dagger connected, and Lilith looked in surprise as she realized she had missed. Cain had raised his hand between her blow, and the dagger had embedded itself into his palm almost to the hilt instead of in his still heart. He raised his leg and attempted to kick her away but she tore the dagger free and jumped backwards before he could connect. As if he had ever landed a hit on her, as if any vampire had ever been fast enough to challenge her.

She smiled again as Cain forced himself to stand. The hand that had been stabbed was numb with cold from the silver and his legs were shaking. He laughed in his mind at how easily he'd been brought low. Lilith wasn't wrong. He'd been so focused on Shido he had let his training wane.

His sire sighed and shook her head, rubbing a temple. "Here I admired your stubbornness back when you were human."

Lilith twirled the dagger between her fingers. To her surprise, he managed to stand straight and rematerialized his blood saber. There was silver ingrained in his saber, and Lilith could see that it was making it difficult for Cain to keep the blade solid.

"Tell you what?" Lilith smiled. "I'm in the mood for a little more fun, so why don't we make this interesting before I kill you."

She tucked the dagger into her belt as she bit her free hand deeply enough a drop of blood ran down her skin. Cain tightened his grip on his saber as the blood crystallized around her hand into her blood weapon. Once a vampire got old enough, they could control not just the size of their weapon, but its shape. While Cain made his into a saber, Lilith's blood became a staff as long as she was tall. A curved blade appeared on either end as it solidified into her double-bladed scythe as older vampires could form their blood into unique weapons.

"Let's see how long you last before I can kill you, my dear fledgling." Lilith purred dramatically and spun her scythe in one hand.

With a smile that promised she would enjoy this, she tightened her grip on her scythe and leapt at Cain.

* * *

 **Yikes. That's a scary bitch. Well, between Kyra, Lilith, and Cain, who would you rather become king? Kyra already said the other vampires would not accept Shido as king due to his hunting of them and they wouldn't, which excludes him. Riho's still a fledgling. It has to be among the three of them.**

 **No, I'm not trying to make Cain look weak. I wasn't happy with what happened to Cain in this chapter either, but we all know how strong Cain is. Judging from that, we now know how strong Lilith is and Kyra could probably match Lilith in a fight. Lilith's also _much_ faster then normal because of her clan, which will be explained soon.**


	6. Prey

Shido ran across the rooftops of buildings, unaware of how close he was to Cain. Running just ahead of him, jumping from building to building, was another vampire Shido had caught him in the middle of feeding on a middle school girl. He had left the girl in Yayoi's care almost ten minutes ago but had yet to catch her attacker.

Shido's opponent tssked when he saw he was being followed and bit his hand, materializing a blood blade. He jumped off the building as his sword solidified, and landed on the wall of the next one. Using the wall as a springboard, he reappeared in Shido's line of sight with the sword in hand.

Shido flinched to one side, and the sword grazed his cheek. He almost fell off the roof before he summoned a blade of his own. The reason he hated fighting vampires was not because they were his kin, but because they were more intelligent than other breeds and had the same skills that he had.

It was fortunate Shido had been sparring with Riho because he was able to pass a few blows back and forth. Shido was able to keep up, but had some trouble keeping his footing on the tilted roof. His opponent seemed to be just as ill-equipped for rooftop sparring and Shido was able to successfully faint and then strike across his chest. The other vampire's foot slipped and he fell onto his back, reeling from the wound.

Shido shifted his sword into a reverse grip to bring it down and skewer his opponent, but the other vampire lashed out a foot and kicked his knee. Something snapped and Shido's sword cleaved through the air. Then the other vampire swarmed to his feet and slashed Shido across the face. He gagged at the pain and leaned too far backwards.

He saw the other vampire smile as Shido fell off the roof. Shido's sword dropped from his hand and snapped out a hand to grab the fire escape, bending the iron railing. Blood fell into his eyes and he dangled from the fire escape with one hand. Shido grabbed it with his other hand and swung onto the fire escape.

With a scowl, Shido wiped the blood from his eyes with one hand and looked up in frustration. The other vampire was jumping from the roof onto another one, getting away. Grumbling to himself about incompetence, he wiped the rest of the blood off his face with his sleeve. The pain from the wound receded as the wound healed and vanished.

He heard an inhuman shriek and he gave a start in surprise, swinging around to the direction of the sound. A building was in the way so Shido quickly returned to the roof and then froze where he stood. The vampire Shido had been chasing was clutching his arms to his chest and, even as he watched, the vampire's body turned to dust and disintegrated. Scraps of clothing fluttered to the surface of the roof and down to the ally below.

Having never seen a vampire be killed, Shido openly stared. He raised his eyes from the dusted vampire to the person that had killed them. It was a vampire, Shido could sense that instantly.

"Kyra?" Shido whispered.

The killer looked like Kyra but her clothing was different and her hair longer. Instinct made him kneel on the roof so he'd be harder to see. If that wasn't Kyra then it had to be Lilith. Shido didn't know much about Lilith, only that she was a reoccurring menace the Vampire Hunters had repeatedly tried and failed to kill.

Lilith turned this way and that after her victim turned to dust and then swore loudly, stomping her foot. Shido heard the cement under her foot crack.

"Damn him!" She said loudly. "Cain you coward! Get back here and let me kill you!"

Shido's breath caught, and he remembered Riho asking him if he was going to warn Cain. The moonlight falling on Lilith's clothing revealed that the cloth was streaked in red. He thought it was an odd style until he saw the stains were on her skin as well. That was a lot of blood.

Lilith kicked at the dust pile in front of her, scattering it. "Thanks to you distracting me he's gone. He'll probably leave and I'll have to spend _forever_ finding him again."

Shido felt a shiver run down his spine at Lilith's unsettling words. It was the tone of voice more than the words that did it for Shido and he knelt on the roof, as still as a statue. He had no heartbeat and no need to breathe, so he was quite still. Every instinct was screaming at him not to let Lilith know he was there. This was the first time he had met her, and Shido wished he never had.

Lilith turned in a full circle, evidently not seeing him. Shido closed his eyes in silent relief, but when he opened them he found that Lilith was not there anymore. His first guess was that she left. His second guess was the sensation that there was someone behind him.

He whipped around but his attacker grabbed him by his throat. Shido gave a strangled noise as he was slammed onto the roof with some force. He looked up into yellow vampire eyes framed by orange-blonde locks.

"Oh," the vampire cooed, tightening her grip on his throat to the point of snapping his spine. "What's this? A little mouse spying on me?"

It was Lilith. She was fast.

There was a glimmer as the moonlight reflected off a dagger as she held over his eyes. Shido actually crossed his eyes, focusing on the smears of blood on it before returning to Lilith.

"Tell me, little mouse," Lilith cooed. "Did you happen to see what happened to the vampire I was fighting? Long blonde hair, dressed in an outfit several centuries old, goes by the name Cain?"

"No," Shido managed to say, glad he didn't need to breathe. "I just saw you… k-k-kill that other one. You can kill a vampire?"

Shido astonishment at seeing a vampire died gave him the perfect cover for not answering about Cain. Older vampires could tell when they were being lied to. It was a temporary save at best though. If Lilith was old enough she could discern his sire's scent through his own as he and his sire shared a blood tie. Lilith might very well notice Cain's scent.

"Yes," Lilith answered with a snap, "of course you can. Vampire are immortal to time and disease, but little else. I'm sure you noticed that you can't enter a private residence without the invitation of someone who lives there."

She brought the dagger down suddenly, crucifying his palm to the roof almost to the hilt. The breath hissed between his teeth in a shriek, feeling more than just pain. He felt fire, an icy fire so cold it burned racing up his bloodstream like venom. It was silver. Shido had felt the burn of silver before and he knew it now.

"Now then," Lilith said sternly, keeping a tight grip on Shido. "Did you see Cain?"

"I didn't see you fight anyone," Shido said honestly.

Lilith released his throat, looking at him intently. The pain from the silver caused Shido's eyes to shift from yellow to blue. She grabbed Shido by his chin and forced his head down, her gaze becoming more intent. Shido felt a chill of fear. Had she noticed Cain's scent?

"I think I know you," Lilith said slowly, recalling the memories. "You're that human. Yes. You're the one who's got kin high up in the Association and pulled rank to keep them from killing Cain."

Shido's eyes widened when Lilith said that. Other than the minutes leading up to Cain siring him, memories of his human life were damningly scarce. Nowhere in his memories was the incident Lilith mentioned, but given the state of his memories, he wasn't surprised.

"How curious," Lilith tilted her head to one side. "The last time I saw you, you were dying – you'd betrayed the humans for favor of us and the Hunters had caught up to you. Now you're a vampire. There weren't very many vampires in Sibiu, you understand. It is the capital of the Association. I wonder who sired you?"

Now Shido was starting to get scared. This vampire seemed somewhat… psychotic compared to Kyra, and he really didn't want her knowing he was Cain's fledgling. He feared Kyra more than he feared Lilith, but there was something familiar about this one. He hadn't met her since he had become a vampire, but Shido got a strong feeling that he had met her back when he was human.

Lilith yanked the dagger free from his hand and stuffed it into her belt. Then she grabbed a handful of his hair and dragged him upwards as she stood. Shido grabbed her wrist, but wasn't strong enough to break her grip.

"In fact," Lilith continued thoughtfully as she dragged him up so eh was standing. "Other than myself, I can't really name many vampires. The weaklings won't go near the city and the strong vampires don't care – if they even know about the Hunters. You see, that was the problem with Vladimir. He was a weak king that let everyone do their own thing as long as his crown wasn't threatened. He didn't do a thing to stop the Association when it started, or when it began to grow and kill vampires. Now they're too experienced to easily wipe off the map. I don't regret killing him."

Lilith stopped and frowned, a crease appearing on her forehead when she realized she had gotten off topic.

"Anyway," Lilith resumed. "About the only other hostile vampire in Sibiu besides myself at that time was Cain and I know I didn't sire you."

Panic made Shido look up at her, and Lilith smiled in a too bright manner.

"Cain's scent isn't on your skin so you haven't had contact with him for some time," Lilith admitted, "but it's in your blood. His blood made you and given that I'm his sire, I know his blood's scent quite well."

If Shido had been human his heart would have stopped.

"Tell me little mouse," Lilith cooed. "How badly do you think Cain wants you to alive?"

"Not badly," Shido admitted.

"I doubt that very much," Lilith disagreed.

"I hate him," Shido told her flatly. "If you can kill him I'd be grateful."

"Ooh," Lilith made a face between amused and impressed. "You're a vicious fledgling. I don't particularly care about _your_ feelings though. I only care what Cain has to say about this."

She spun Shido around so his back was to her and pulled him close to his chest, a hand cupping the side of his face in what should have been a gentle movement. Shido saw the dagger appear in her other hand, but she didn't strike with it. He guessed that she was about as physically strong as Cain, too strong for him to do anything about her.

"Cain!" Lilith shouted loudly, her voice carrying over the rooftops. "Where are you? I know you're around here. You couldn't have gone too far given how much silver is poisoning your blood! I suggest you come out now before I kill your little fledgling!"

Shido wasn't the least bit surprised when no one appeared. Lilith sighed, obviously impatient to kill him. She slashed across the front of Shido's chest with the dagger and Shido almost doubled over as the silver hit him. Her grip kept him in place. He tried to keep quiet but he still vocalized his pain.

"Now!" Lilith shouted louder.

"You're wasting your time," Shido warned her again.

There was a moment of silence, and then Lilith spoke up.

"I disagree," she argued with a purr to her voice, looking intently at something with a smug smile.

Confused, Shido followed her gaze and froze. Standing a building away in the shadows were a pair of gold eyes. His first thought was that it could be any vampire until the other vampire took a step forward into the moonlight. Shido was pretty sure his jaw had dropped and he stared as Cain's form took shape under the silver light.

"Cain?" Shido said softly.

"Good fledgling," Lilith nodded. "Now, come over here so I can kill you or this one dies."

"You'll kill him anyway," Cain spoke softly, his words somehow carrying over to the two of them. "You want to eliminate your current bloodline so none of us can be used against you. Shido is part of it."

"Shido," Lilith repeated Shido's name, smiling down at him. "Now that name I know. You really are that petulant human that kept getting in the Association's way – and mine."

She raised her head back to Cain, addressing him again.

"You're right," she agreed, "but he's your fledgling, and that makes him my greatfledgling – two generations removed from me. That dilutes the connection between us to the point where it might not matter. If you let me kill you, I'll let _him_ run off and find somewhere to hide until I'm king. After I'm king I might or might not hunt him down. Who knows, I might get so caught up in thinning out the herds I might forget he exists."

Shido knew that by "herds" Lilith was referring to the human population. He squirmed, exasperated that there was nothing he could do against Lilith. Lilith's claws scratched across the surface of his neck, making him hiss in a way that could not be confused as human.

"Lilith," Cain interrupted.

His voice, his deep, strong familiar voice, sounded nearby, closer than before. Shido was shocked to see Cain materialize out of the shadows and stand in front of them, only a few feet away.

"You're going to go to war against the humans," Shido said softly.

"Obviously," Lilith agreed. "My idiotic sire didn't do anything to stop the Hunters so I will. Revealing to the humans that nightbreeds exist _will_ cause a stir, but without being bound by secrecy we'll have much more room to act."

She tightened her grip on his throat in excitement at the prospect of the slaughter she would begin if the nightbreeds started an open war against the humans.

"Even Kyra isn't that stupid," Cain interrupted Lilith's daydreaming.

"I don't think you're in a position to get self-righteous with me," Lilith pointed out, dragging the silver dagger across Shido's arm. "You have even less right to compare me to that narcissistic harridan that calls herself my sister. You know I'm right about her."

"You are," Cain agreed smoothly, "but at least Kyra is sane. Now release him."

Lilith's grip had relaxed but now tightened again. Shido didn't think Lilith would really release him. Cain was being too hard on her. Suddenly though, he was shoved forward by Lilith as she jumped back. The sound of a gunshot caught up to Lilith's movement and Shido felt something – a bullet? – clip his neck. It was silver-coated. Cain swooped forward and grabbed him before he fell, leaping off the roof with Shido in his arms.

"H-hey!" Lilith shouted after him.

She turned away from them and deflected another bullet with Cain's dagger. The bullet clashed off it with a ringing sound and she instantly materialized her scythe, slipping the dagger into her belt and bringing her scythe to block a silvered blade. A pair of long-bladed daggers that slid across the shaft of her scythe. Someone had jumped across the roof at her, bringing both his blades down on her. His open jacket revealed the holstered gun, and only one species bothered with guns.

She deflected the silver-edged knifes and swung at her opponent, more than a little surprised when he not only dodged her swing but landed on the staff of her scythe. He smiled at her arrogantly. One of Lilith's eyebrows twitched as her eyes turned gold and the human jumped over her head to avoid a telekinetic pulse that should have shattered his ribs. Lilith tracked his movement as he went up, way up, somersaulted, and landed lightly on his feet behind her.

"Hunter," Lilith recognized. "What are you doing so far away from Romania?"

"Didn't you hear?" Stefan Lupei asked Lilith, spreading his arms to either side of his body, still smiling. "The king is dead. This is prime hunting season for us Hunters. You're too busy killing each other to watch your back. Do you know that I've killed seven vampires since I came to this city, two of them tonight?"

Lilith shrugged, not really caring about the common vampires that were being killed. It was easy to make new ones to replace them.

"You haven't changed," Lupei said, apprising her. "At least Kyra cares about the lives of her fellow vampires."

"So what?" Lilith challenged, "are you working with Kyra and Cain again to kill me? You might want to rethink siding with her. I enjoy playing with the Association, but _she_ is dead set on bringing about the Golden Dawn."

"All breeds want to create the Golden Dawn," Lupei pointed out.

"Not me," Lilith shrugged, twirling her scythe and resting the curved blade on the roof. "As long as I can enjoy myself and feast I really don't care about the other nightwalkers."

"Selfish as well as vicious," Lupei corrected himself.

Then he paused as if realizing he had missed something.

"Wait a minute," he frowned. "Cain's here?"

Lilith hesitated and then slapped a hand over her forehead. Oh wonderful. It was just coincidence this Hunter had _happened_ to interrupt her. Getting tag teamed out of her prey – the little mouse in this case – by Cain and the Hunters, when they weren't trying to kill each other, was one thing, but for the Hunter to be working by himself and still get the drop on her? This was embarrassing.

While Lupei tried to understand what he had missed, Lilith leaped at him with blinding speed. He blocked both of her strikes, but she managed to graze his side. Instead of harming him, her blade slid across his holstered pistol. A human shouldn't be able to move so fast, Lilith thought as Lupei put some distance between himself and her. She let him do so, each gauging their opponent.

Lupei was not expecting to face a royal vampire by himself and was thinking he might be in over his head. Lilith on the other hand, reminded herself that although these humans weren't a threat to a royal like her they were able to kill other vampires. She could understand _why_ a Hunter could win with this level of speed, but _how_ a human could move so fast still eluded her. His eyes shouldn't even be able to track her movements, let alone anticipated her actions and be able to block her.

Lilith was still looking intently at the Hunter, certain he was human, but she was still keeping an eye on her surroundings. As such, she was not skewered when the Hunter's shadow changed form and several pegs rose off the ground at her with swift speed. She simply slashed through the air with her scythe, shattering them like glass and kicking up a breeze that threw the shards back at the Hunter. They dissolved before they reached him and rejoined his shadow.

Lilith would be honest with herself. She wasn't expecting a human to do an attack like that.

"You'll pardon my floundering I hope," Lupei interrupted her train of thought, "but I've never been in an all-out fight with a royal before. I'm not sure what tricks work against you."

He suddenly crossed his blades overhead in an x-shape, catching Lilith's falling scythe. Instead of taking the full force of the blow, Lupei stepped to one side and redirected the unorthodox weapon into the roof of the building, caving part of it in. Lilith curved the angle of her attack and lashed out with a foot, effectively throwing Lupei into the roof's access to the staircase. The human crashed into the cement surrounding the door and fell to the ground, the cement caved in where he had hit it. Rather than be dead or unconscious as he should be, he landed on all fours and quickly stood, barely stunned.

Lilith swung again, and Lupei jumped over the top of her scythe, somersaulting sideways over its surface to land to one side of her. His momentum made him slide across the rooftop and he watched impassively as Lilith's weapon cut clean through the steel-reinforced cement, causing the top half of the small structure to slide away from the bottom half.

"Don't interrupt me!" Lilith ordered him in a voice similar to a shriek. "I'm thinking!"

Lupei raised his blades without answering, the weapons have been knocked from his hands but somehow rematerialized in them despite him not picking them up. He dodged and wove around her strikes, trying to hit her with the silver-edged swords he held. She was fast though, and he was so focused on her scythe that he forgot about her hands. Her fingernails of one hand sharpened and elongated to knives, and his shadow had to rise off the ground and block the blow before it slit his throat.

There! Lilith saw it. His shadow was not shaped like him.

She let him stumble back and he looked down at his jacket where her scythe had torn a gash along the front of it.

"I see," Lilith nodded calmly in a very different tone then a second ago, "and I'm astounded by you Hunters. The lengths you're willing to go in order to get the power to kill us is astounding. Tell me, was it Helsing that forced you to form a contract?"

"So you noticed," Lupei mused, not surprised. "Commander Helsing didn't force me though. I agreed to it myself."

"Just out of curiosity, but aren't you Hunters here to protect humans?" Lilith asked.

"Our job," Lupei corrected, neither agreeing nor disagreeing with her. "Is to hunt vampires, not protect humans."

"And you call me vicious," Lilith chided, raising a hand to her chest. "Well, now that I know what I want I might as well kill you and catch up to the little mouse and his sire."

"Kill me?" Lupei asked, shaking his head. "You've been trying to do that."

Lilith smiled, baring her fangs. "I wasn't trying to kill you, merely observing. Now I will."

Lupei's eyebrows furred together in confusion and then suddenly Lilith wasn't in front of him. He jumped, only for his breed-enhanced shadow to save him from being decapitated. Then Lilith kicked him in the chest and sent the enhanced human flying through the air and crashing onto a nearby rooftop. He rolled several times, blades sliding away from him.

"Ouch," Lupei grumbled under his breath and stood.

He jumped to one side, barely avoiding Lilith's continued attack. There was a flash of pain as her scythe cut across his chest and drew blood and his knives reappeared once more in his hands in time to parry her strike. It was a narrow thing and he quickly found himself under assault – a hit here, there, a flash of the scythe or one of her boots. Lupei was struggling and felt pain again and again as she landed shallow cuts that reached from shoulder.

It didn't take him long to realize that Lilith was playing with him, hitting him cut by cut instead of just killing him at once. She was still holding back. The thought was not a welcome one.

* * *

 **Incidentally, the Hunters are usually a lot more effective at killing vampires, especially Lupei. He's an A-Grade Hunter. Vladimir Tepes, the last vampire king, was a fledgling of the previous vampire king. It can be traced back all the way to the first vampire king, also the first vampire, so they're more powerful then the average vampire. That's why they're nicknamed the royal clan.**

 **Right now, the only royal vampires are Kyra and Lilith and their fledglings. Kyra doesn't have any fledglings, so it's just Lilith and her fledglings, starting with Cain and continuing to Shido and Riho.** **Just to make it clear (if it's already not), I'm _not_ making Shido the vampire king. That's too predictable for my tastes.**


	7. Falling Out

Shido was dropped onto the asphalt of a street some ways from Lilith and the Hunter, and although his landing could have been better he managed to stay on his feet. Cain, having dropped him, landed instead on the top of a nearby streetlight. He looked in the direction where they had come to see if Lilith was following, but it seemed she had stayed behind to play with the Hunter. There was certainly no way a human, even a Hunter, could threaten her but the Hunter's presence would distract her. Although Cain hated the Hunters, he had to admit that sometimes their timing was perfect.

The sounds of Lilith playing echoed down the street as Shido checked his arm. Silver burned in his veins, a side effect of Hunter blades. Their blades were not only edged with silver but coated with a fragile silver glaze. Every time one of their blades struck, flecks of the silver glaze broke off the blade and entered the victim's bloodstream. It didn't bother humans, but for Nightwalkers, it created silver poisoning. The worse the wound, the more silver infected their bloodstream.

Shido could tell he would be fine though, given some time.

"Why did you show yourself?" Shido spoke into the air, expecting Cain to answer him.

When only silence greeted him, Shido looked up at the streetlight. Cain was gone. Shido sighed, not surprised. He should probably head back to the office and try to find Yayoi. The only thing that could get rid of silver poisoning was untainted blood.

A strange sound interrupted his thinking, and Shido returned to reality. The sound was a human in distress. Shido looked up at the streetlight were Cain was supposed to be, not liking the conclusion he was coming to. Cain wouldn't. Wouldn't what? Attack a human to get fresh blood to purge the silver from his system? Of course he would.

Shido ran towards the sounds as they tapered off to silence, sliding to a stop at the mouth of an alley. A female human, a prostitute from the looks of it, was lying unconscious in Cain's arms as he drank from her. The scent of her blood hit Shido like a wave and he stared at the human as Cain drank, not moving to stop his sire. He couldn't ignore it.

Yayoi had been acting as Shido's donor, giving him the blood he needed, but he could only take so much from her so often. It had always been enough for him despite being on the slim side, but now Yayoi also fed Riho. Shido's meals had been cut down for her, and he had often been skipping meals so Riho could eat. It meant hunger had become a constant companion.

Normally he could ignore it, even when he smelled human blood, but right now, all the blood in his body was tainted by silver. It made him feel cold and hungry, and miserable besides. His physical strength was sapped to the point of human weakness. Every instinct was screaming he needed fresh blood, including his hunger. Now Cain was eating.

Cain must have noticed Shio was watching him because he raised his golden eyes from his meal. He apprised Shido, noticing the way he cradled his arm to his chest and how his blue eyes were on the verge of shifting to gold. Something in Cain's eyes softened and removed his fangs from her throat, standing. Then he threw the prostitute at Shido.

Shido caught her reflexively, as well as he could with one arm. She made no sound, and Shido could tell that her heartbeat had slowed dangerously. Cain had drunk deeply from her. His hands started shaking as Shido looked down at her, the scent of her blood washing over him. He remembered hunting with Cain in the past. When Shido was still newly sired, he would occasionally miss his kill and Cain would bring him a human so he wouldn't go hungry – sometimes at least.

"Eat," Cain ordered Shido. "You need the blood."

Shido looked down at her and then back up at Cain, the blue in his irises slipping away. He looked down at the woman, fighting to keep his eyes from turning gold. His grip on her tightened.

"Eat," Cain repeated. "I've already taken too much for her to survive. There is no reason to let the rest of her blood go to waste."

Cain looked down at his clothes, torn and bloody from his fight with Lilith. He brushed his hands across his clothing as if dusting them off and the bloodstains vanished, the cloth fixing itself so he looked as immaculate as ever. Believing Shido would eat, he wiped the blood from his lips.

His most pressing concern was the reality that the new vampire king would soon be chosen here. Lilith and Kyra, as Tepes' only fledglings, were the two most probable replacements. As Cain was Lilith's fledglings, one could make the argument that he was a viable replacement as king. It was also possible that Abraham van Helsing, the leader of the vampire hunters, would make a grab for the throne. Helsing was Cain's eldest fledgling after all, so he, like Shido and Riho, was of the royal clan.

Given the opportunity, Cain wasn't the least bit surprised to see Helsing's vampire hunters in the city. Helsing was no fool. He was a genius. There was no way he would miss this chance to become king and use his rank to help his Hunters make the vampires extinct. Significant strides had been made in that direction already. The number of vampires had gone from hundreds of thousands, to tens of thousands, to less than ten thousand.

Cain couldn't let Helsing get near the throne. The need to stop him was more urgent then the need to stop Lilith, but he felt the need to deny both. Kyra was power hungry and deadly arrogant. In fact, Cain concluded the only member of the royal clan that would make a good king was himself. Cain had to win the crown and that meant he probably had to kill the sisters.

"No," Shido said softly in a hoarse voice, interrupting Cain's thinking.

Cain brought himself back to reality at Shido's declaration and turned to look at his fledgling. "No?"

"No," Shido repeated. "I won't drink from her."

In what must have been a supreme effort, Shido gently set the woman on the ground. His eyes were still gold and Cain could feel his hunger echoing through the bond that linked them. Shido's childlike stubbornness would have amused Cain in the past, it was one of the things he normally liked about him, but right now Cain felt irritated.

"You must eat," Cain informed him, closing the distance between himself and his fledgling.

He grabbed the human by her hair and dragged her upwards towards Shido. Shido shook his head again and took a step back though Cain could tell it wouldn't take much to get him to drink. As stubborn as he was, he still needed something fresh to get the silver out of his system.

"I said no!" Shido snarled. "I won't eat her. I'm not a monster like you that kills on a whim!"

Cain sighed, starting to feel a little irritated. He had a lot to do and not much time to do it if he wanted to take the crown.

"Shido," he said softly as if disappointed.

Shido shook his head back and forth sharply. "I said no and I meant it."

"Stop pretending you're a human," Cain ordered him in a tone as if he were speaking to a child. "You're not. Humans don't get silver poisoning."

Shido closed his eyes and took a breath to calm himself. When he opened them, they were blue again.

"That's why I left," Shido said softly.

Cain paused.

"You're so _arrogant_ ," Shido emphasized. "You treat me like a child, like you know what's best for me and everyone else. You fancied yourself the king of the vampires, one of the most ancient and powerful. And I believed you."

Shido held his injured arm close to his chest, looking down at the human that had become Cain's dinner.

"The Hunters have only been around for five centuries, and you used to be one of them as a human, so you can't be more than five centuries old. You're less than a century older than me. That's hardly ancient and you're not a vampire of astounding power. I should know since I just met one that was." Shido's thoughts flashed back to Lilith. "You're part of the royal clan but you're no king."

"Not yet," Cain agreed to Shido's last point.

Cain watched as Shido's expression hesitated and then became startled as he realized Cain's plan.

"No," Shido shook his head and took a step back. "You? You can't become king."

Now it was Cain's turn to be surprised by Shido's words.

"I won't let you," Shido warned Cain. "I won't let a monster like you become the Nightwalker's king!"

 _That_ ended Cain's patience for Shido's foolishness. In one smooth move, he swept forward and grabbed Shido's uninjured wrist, dragging him forward so there was barely a few inches between them. Shido's eyes turned yellow reflexively and he held out a hand as if to materialize a blade. His fledgling would dare raise a blade against him? He who had given him immortality? _Again_?

The sound of the slap echoed as Cain struck Shido. Shido slowly raised his head as the sound faded, the red imprint of a hand on the side of his face. There was hate in his fledgling's eyes. Cain tightened his grip on the human's throat until her spine snapped softly, killing her. The hate in Shido's eyes turned to shock before returning, deeper than before.

"There," Cain said simply. "Now she's dead, so you don't have to worry about killing her. Drink. There's no reason to let her blood go to waste. I'm your sire and I know what's best for you. Do as I say!"

"I don't know much about Lilith," Shido admitted darkly, "I've only met her once. But I can tell one thing. You're definitely her fledgling. You act just like her."

Cain recoiled as if _he_ had been slapped. Perhaps he had forgotten as it had been so long since he had last seen his sire, but Lilith was arrogant. Her arrogance was why Cain had left her. There might be some similarities between himself and Lilith, but he was nothing like her. He was neither cruel nor sadistic and although he was hard on Shido, he had never caused him _real_ harm. Cain did sit back and watch while Shido was in trouble, letting him struggle for himself, but he would never watch if Shido's life was in real danger. That was nothing like Lilith.

"Shido," Cain said softly, able to see his fledgling's point but unwilling to admit it, "won't you come back to Transylvania with me? After this is over and I am king, you would be Prince of the Nightwalker world. You would have extreme authority over the Nightwalkers, vampires and breeds alike."

"I'm not interested in power," Shido dismissed.

"Then how about using your rank to better protect the humans?"

That made Shido pause, and for a moment, he turned the idea over in his mind. Shido had been to Sângeriu, the Nightwalkers' capital city, before, and wouldn't _mind_ living there. He couldn't go though. Even as prince, he would still be forced to be by Cain's side. At least here in Japan he could pretend he was away from him.

"Fine," Cain gave up when Shido didn't answer.

Shido glanced up at him, surprised by what Cain had just said. He had never really won an argument against Cain before, and wasn't sure what to make of it.

"I have to win the crown from the sisters," Cain continued, "and I don't have time for your immaturity. I'll deal with you after I become king."

Shido felt his blood run cold. The king's orders could not be disobeyed no matter how badly the vampire wished to do so. Vladimir had rarely, if ever, used the ability. Cain would not be so lax. It was at that moment he realized that he couldn't let Cain become king. He had to stop him, even if it meant putting Kyra or Lilith on the throne.

Since Shido wasn't going to eat her, Cain picked up the woman and vanished into the shadows. Shido couldn't do anything to stop him, not yet anyway. Perhaps later, with the aid of one of the sisters or the Hunters, he could. What would happen if Cain was killed during this? Would Shido be okay with that?

Yes, Shido realized, he would.

Shido heard a gentle sigh in his thoughts and realized that Cain, using the bond, had heard Shido's thought. With a tssk, Shido began to head back to his office. Riho would be there and from there he could contact Yayoi and get fresh blood. Cain's feelings were the least of his concern. His fate, as well as the humans', hung in the balance.

* * *

 **... Yeah, I don't actually have a lot for the comments this time other then the number of vampires left. A species is considered endangered when their numbers drop below ten thousand. It's strange to think of vampires as being endangered though.**

 **But Pengping, you say, surely vampires can just turn a bunch of humans and rebuild their numbers. They could, but they're a little picky about who they turn since they have to deal with them for the rest of eternity. That bond mentioned is the bond between sire and fledgling. It's telepathic and empathic, allowing the two to read and feel each other's emotions. It's a deep connection and again, they have to be in contact with whoever they turn for an eternity. So yes, they're picky. Like all apex predators, vampires typically breed (if you can call it that) very slowly.**


	8. The Next Step

Shido gratefully accepted a cup of coffee from Riho with a smile. His fledgling still looked worried as she gave the second cup to Yayoi. Yayoi held the mug in one hand as she adjusted her collar with her other to hide Shido's bitemarks. Guni hovered cross-legged near Shido, waiting with unusual patience for Shido to explain.

"Feel better?" Yayoi asked him.

Shido nodded somewhat shyly, aware he had bitten Yayoi harder than he needed to when he had fed. It still felt good to have the use of his arm back, and that made him feel a little guiltier. He took a sip of the coffee so he had an excuse to look away from the bloodstain on Yayoi's neck.

"Is that girl alright?" Shido asked.

"The middle schooler?" Yayoi asked, "Yes. She'll be fine with some rest."

Shido was relieved.

"Are you going to tell us what happened to you now?" Yayoi pushed when Shido still didn't say anything. "Did you get into a fight with Lupei?"

Shido shook his head. "No, it was Lilith. She had a silvered weapon. The vampire I was chasing interrupted her while she was fighting Cain, and she killed him."

"Cain?" Riho interrupted as Yayoi asked said, "Killed him?"

"She didn't kill Cain," Shido clarified. "She killed the vampire I was chasing. I had fallen behind, so I was able to stop before I got too close to her."

He briefly remembered in embarrassment how easily the other vampire had knocked him off the roof. Guni gave Shido a sly look, guessing what had happened. Shido didn't look at her.

"Lilith noticed I was there though, which is why she injured my arm," Shido continued, looking at the torn and bloody sleeve of his shirt. "Lupei picked that moment to jump in and try to kill Lilith himself."

"Really?" Guni finally interrupted. "All that happened?"

Shido shrugged helplessly. "Cain and I had the same idea to use the chaos to leave though I have no idea what happened to him."

Riho raised her head slightly, sensing more than anything that her sire was lying about the fight. She wasn't sure _how_ she knew, but she knew. Why would he lie? Shido was looking down at his drink, fingers resting on the handle.

"Yayoi," Shido began, looking up at her. "I need you to speak to Ryuichi. Take Riho with you. He's more likely to show his true colors if a vampire of her status is present."

All three of the girls looked at him as if he had grown a second head.

"What do you mean a vampire of my status?" Riho interrupted the silence.

Shido realized he had better explain himself. "Riho, do you remember the story of how the Nightwalkers were created?"

"Yes," Riho said cautiously, wondering what that had to do with her question.

Shido motioned for her to tell it, and Riho, with another confused look, did so.

"Nightwalker is a name given by the humans to us, the creations of The First One," Riho began. "The First was banished from his home by his brothers and Earth was where he came. The events surrounding his past are mostly mythology. In the beginning, he was alone here, but then he took notice of the humans, then still a young species. His power astounded them a small minority began to worship him. He had never been worshipped before, and imbued them with his power. His power was great though, too great for their weak forms to survive."

Yayoi made a face.

"The humans still cherished him though," Riho continued, "he who freely used his power to help them. He learned that he could gift them with some of his immortality, but only by killing them first. He brought forth the darkness in their hearts and used that to fuel their strength. Ten humans were enhanced in this manner: Set, Skadus, Nosferatu, Sălbatic, and Cyzarine, the first five vampire sisters. Dræco, Zephyr, Terran, Nereus, and Xerxes were the first five nightbreed brothers."

Guni rested her elbows on her knees, enjoying the story while Yayoi listened. Shido nodded and leaned forward.

"That's right," he interrupted her. "From the four younger vampire sisters came the four vampire clans. Riho, I never told you which clan you and I are a part of."

Riho shrugged, "I asked, but you said it wasn't important. I agreed. We aren't part of normal vampire society so our clan doesn't mean much."

"It does in this case," Shido corrected gently, running the pad of a finger across the rim of his mug. "Do you know why it is always a crossbreed who crowns the king?"

"No," Riho said slowly, wondering what her sire was hinting at.

"A story Cain told me," Shido explained. "The crossbreed is not the one that crown's the new king. Their body is simply used as a host for the First One. So they would have the power to protect the vampire species they rule over and the Nightwalker world they are a part of, the First One gives the king some of his own power – directly, when he crowns them."

"What?" Yayoi asked, giving him a bewildered look. "The First One? Your god?"

"Don't say it like that," Shido shook his head, wincing. "I don't know much about human religions. I was probably raised as a human believing in a certain God or Gods, but I don't remember it. The only religion I know is the First One. From what I've heard about human religions, your gods don't have much contact and most of your belief in them is based on faith."

"The First One's not like that," Guni grinned. "He loves all of his Nightwalker children so he often says hello."

Yayoi looked at Guni in amazement, shifting the look between Riho and Shido. Riho looked surprised, but Shido was nodding.

"I've met him, once directly," Shido admitted. "Most Nightwalkers do at some point."

"Shido," Riho murmured softly, trying to grasp that Shido had met their god. "I know this is illuminating for Yayoi, but what does it have to do with _me_ speaking to Ryuichi? There's no proof the First is using him, and you make it sound like I am special compared to other vampires."

"Our clan name," Shido sighed and stood, "is Cyzarine."

Riho reacted almost instantly, jerking back, her eyes flashing to gold briefly. "Cyzarine? I'm one of the _royal clan_?"

"Eh, she is?" Guni exclaimed, "you are?"

"Royal clan?" Yayoi interrupted, "that went right over me."

"Cyzarine was the youngest of the five vampire sisters," Riho answered for Shido, "The sisters fought for dominance, and despite being the youngest she was the most powerful so she became the first king. All the kings after her have been descendants of her fledglings. You're saying I'm from the _royal clan_?"

Shido nodded a little shyly, aware that maybe he shouldn't have kept that from Riho. "The First normally takes the form of a boy when he interacts with us, and Ryuichi is the only crossbreed we know of and he is a young boy. It's a good place to start. Since you're royal Riho that means you're technically one of the heirs to the crown. If the First is using Ryuichi, he's most likely to greet you."

"Why don't you come then?" Riho asked. "You've already met him."

Her tart tone made Shido cringe and he rubbed the back of his neck as he averted his eyes.

"I could," he admitted. "After you and Yayoi go see Ryuichi though, I want you to stay with her and stay away from me."

Riho's annoyance vanished and she blinked as her eyes returned to brown, confused. "Shido-san?"

"Kyra already knows about you Riho and she knows where I am," Shido picked up his empty mug and stepped around his desk, aware that all three girls were watching him intently. "Lilith also knows about me and there was a Hunter present earlier, so the Association might as well. Killing a royal like myself would be a great prize for a Hunter and they would gladly double it Riho."

Cain had already proved he was willing to expose himself to help Shido, so Kyra and Lilith would be quick to use Shido to lure his sire out. Cain himself would want Shido at his side to protect him, or maybe he would kill Shido to eliminate a weakness. There were so many factions vying for victory. Shido wanted Riho off of the playing board and that meant away from him.

Yayoi nodded, understanding that Shido wanted to keep her safe.

"Guni," Shido continued, "I want you to stay with Riho and Yayoi for the next few days."

Guni's ears twitched and she uncrossed her legs, fluttering up to Shido's eye level with an irritated look. "No way am I doing that."

" _Guni_ ," Shido repeated in a tenser voice. "You're not the most powerful nightbreed. Kyra almost killed you last time without even blinking. Cain and the sisters need me alive, but they don't need you, Yayoi, or Riho. Please keep your distance from me for now."

"I think I agree with Guni on this," Yayoi informed Shido in a calm voice.

"You do?" Guni asked, surprised.

She and Yayoi never agreed on anything.

"I do," Yayoi repeated. "Shido, I understand what you're trying to do. Keeping us at arm's length might be a good strategy on paper, but without someone to watch your back you're putting yourself in extra danger. Cain and the sisters might need you alive, but the Hunters don't. You said it yourself: they'd love to kill a royal. It's too dangerous."

A ringing sound cut through the early dawn morning, making Shido jump and drop the mug. He caught it quickly and Yayoi sighed at Shido's strange look. She reached into her purse and fished out her silver cellphone with an apologetic look at Shido. Yayoi's hadn't had it for more than a few days. Everyone was still getting used to it.

Yayoi looked at the screen of her phone to identify the caller and then flipped it open and answered. "This is Matsunaga. What is it?"

The fact that she was using her last name indicated it was likely a call from the NOS, and the various nightwalkers present fell silent as their conversation was put on hold.

"What?" Yayoi asked. "Is he still alive?"

There was a pause as she listened that dragged on for about a minute.

"I'm a little busy right now," Yayoi tried to parry whatever she had been told.

Another pause as Yayoi listened. Riho silently approached and took Shido's mug from him, using her vampiric hearing to listen in on the conversation.

"Alright," Yayoi relented. "I'm on my way."

She lowered the phone from her ear with a dissatisfied look and flipped the top of it shut.

"I assume you both heard that?" She asked the vampires present.

Riho nodded as she walked into the kitchen but Shido shook his head. It wouldn't be courteous to eavesdrop on her conversation.

"That was Tashiro Tetsuya," Yayoi told Shido for his benefit. "The NOS just found Lupei. The Hunter's still alive and is being rushed to a hospital in critical condition."

"Alive?" Shido repeated, thinking that Lilith must have gotten bored and left him.

"Tashiro wants me to go to the hospital," Yayoi looked at the surface of her form.

"Does he want to ask about us?" Riho asked as she left the kitchen and stood in the doorway.

"He didn't say," Yayoi murmured darkly, worried.

The NOS knew that Shido was a vampire but didn't know he was royal or about Riho. Now what were they going to do about Ryuichi?

"If Guni is willing to stay with Shido, I can go speak to Ryuichi myself while Yayoi checks in," Riho offered.

"No," Shido disagreed instinctively. "It's too dangerous for you to go out by yourself right now."

"I'm in less danger then you," Riho countered without missing a beat.

"How?" Shido asked her. "You're still a fledgling Riho. There are powerful vampires other than the sisters present."

Riho was a little irked by Shido's dismissal of her power despite knowing he was just being overprotective.

"You're right," Riho agreed, "I am just a fledgling. Thus, I'm no threat to any of the older vampires. As long as I don't interfere, they'll barely notice a child like me. If they ask, I can just tell them that my sire was killed during the fighting and that I want to see who becomes my king. I'm sure a lot of vampires in the city right now are just watching instead of competing for the crown. I'll be one more observer."

Guni watched her appreciatively with a grin. Riho was probably right.

"It's just too dangerous," Shido warned her and shook his head.

"No, it's really not," Riho retorted, fisting her hands and putting them on her hips. "You're being too protective Shido-san. No one even _knows_ I'm your fledgling or that you have a fledgling – other than Kyra.."

"Shido," Yayoi offered again, "I think Riho might have a point. The vampires won't waste time attacking an innocent fledgling. Since _you_ can't show yourself it might be a good idea to use her as a scout."

Riho smiled at Yayoi, grateful for the support. "I might still be a fledgling, but I'm far from helpless. You're the one who suggested I speak to Ryuichi. Please let me do so."

Shido hesitated for another few moments before relenting. He was outnumbered and he knew it.

"Fine," Shido reluctantly relented. "The sun's rising though. You can't go out now."

"Now would be best," Guni pointed out as she flew over to Shido. "All the other Nightwalkers will be sleeping."

"It _is_ very cloudy out today," Yayoi murmured.

"I'm not going to win, am I?" Shido asked aloud to no one in particular.

"No," all three of the girls answered at once.

Shido hung his head, thinking that maybe he was being a little overprotective of Riho.

"Fine," Shido agreed to the plan. "After you've spoken to Ryuichi, go to Yayoi's place and stay there. Don't come back to me until this is over."

That hurt to say, but it was what needed to be done.

"If I can't come to you then what are you going to do for blood?" Yayoi asked as she stood to leave and picked up her purse.

"I managed to keep myself fed before I met you Yayoi, "Shido smiled softly. "I can manage again."

"By hunting?" Yayoi couldn't stop the question.

Shido's eyes seemed to darken as he looked away and Yayoi instantly regretted her choice of words. She'd been surprised by his declaration, but knew there was no way he would kill humans for food.

"No," Shido promised, a little hurt by Yayoi's assumption as he turned to look out the window. "The flat where Ryuichi and his mother live is on the other side of town. You better leave now Riho. Call if something happens. Don't come."

Yayoi nodded, aware that Shido had a cell phone the same model as hers in his desk drawer.

"Do you want a ride, Riho?" She asked.

"No," Riho decided in a slightly frosty tone. "I'll walk."

She still wasn't happy with Shido. Both she and Yayoi duly left, and Shido and Guni were left alone. Shido put his feet on his desk and leaned back in his chair, crossing his arms behind his head as he stared at the ceiling. Being a sire was not easy.

* * *

 **Next to nothing about vampires or Nightwalker civilization in general is addressed in the anime, so I am taking liberties. If there is a manga (I'm not sure if there is one) please let me know.**

 **Yes, I am talking about religion and references are made to human religions. Don't kill me. Sorry if it's a delicate subject for you, but I'm not going to let that hamper my story. I'm not saying any one religion is better or worse then any other. These are Nightwalkers and they don't have much tolerance for anything human. This is also a fictional story.**


	9. The First One

Riho stopped walking and looked to either side in an unsure manner. She had walked to the address Yayoi had given her, but found Ryuichi and his mother weren't home. One of the neighbors who saw her knocking told her Megumi had taken her son to a nearby park with a playground and given Riho directions. Now the playground was in sight, but it didn't seem like they were there.

Walking was a bore. It had taken her over an hour to reach Megumi's apartment and another twenty minutes to get to the playground. She wished it was night. Under the cover of darkness, it would have been much easier to run using vampiric speed or simply leap from building to building. Had she taken so long to walk here that they had already left?

Riho supposed she should be grateful it was so cloudy out as she approached the playground, but pretending to be human still irked her. She looked between the photo Yayoi had given her of the crossbreed child and the present children, trying to find Ryuichi. It was a warm Sunday afternoon despite the clouds and the light breeze made it all the more perfect day for mothers to take their children to the playground. It looked to her like all the children of Yokohama were clustered in the playground.

"Riho!" Some called out to her.

Riho, recognizing the voice, turned to see Taki Megumi as she tucked the photo into the back pocket of her red and yellow dress. Because Megumi had been present when Riho had been sired eight years ago, she knew about the Nightwalkers.

"Hello Megumi-san," Riho returned the greeting. "I heard that you were back in the city so I decided to say hello. Is Ryuichi with you?"

"Why yes," Megumi nodded. "I think he's near the monkey bars."

She turned and Riho's eyes picked out Ryuichi handing from the monkey bars. He looked over at them as if sensing he was the subject of the conversation. When he saw Riho, he smiled and dropped to the ground and ran over to them.

"Hello Riho," Ryuichi greeted her.

Riho smiled at the seven-year-old boy, thinking he looked like a normal human. Then she gave a mental start. How had Ryuichi known her name was Riho? Megumi might have mentioned Riho to him, but how did he know _she_ was Riho?

"Did you come all this way to see me?" Ryuichi asked Riho.

Another human woman approached and Megumi began speaking to her instead of watching her son.

"Yes," Riho said, as she knelt in front of Ryuichi.

She wasn't sure what to say next. If Ryuichi wasn't the First One, she would just make a fool of herself.

"Are you here to ask me about the fight for the crown?" Ryuichi asked, tilting his head to one side.

Riho's breath caught and she stared at the boy looking up at her innocently. Beneath the surface of his dark brown eyes, she suddenly caught a glimmer of crimson. Ryuichi smiled as if in understanding and snapped the fingers of his left hand together. The sound echoed and everything fell quiet.

Riho slowly looked up from Ryuichi, stunned by the quiet. It was as if the whole world had been trapped inside a painting, and only then did the dead silence become apparent. All the sounds of the world had stopped. There was no sound of laughter or the children running, or even that of nearby vehicles driving down highways. Not even the wind could break through the silence.

It wasn't just the sound that was trapped. No one moved. The leaves of a nearby tree were frozen in midsway. Some of the children had their feet raised as if they were in the process of taking a step, but they did not move. One woman had accidently dropped a cup of soda and the cup was suspended between her fingers and the ground, the brown liquid and ice just starting to pour from the tipped cup as the lid popped off.

It was as if someone had taken a photograph and that was what Riho was looking at instead of the real world. She had never been so unsettled as she was in that one moment and instinct made her eyes sharpen to gold. Riho bit the side of one hand and materialized a blood sword. Ryuichi watched her without reacting to the sword.

"What did you do?" Riho demanded.

Ryuichi looked up at her with big eyes, evidently wondering why she was reacting as she was. "Did I misunderstand you? I thought you wanted to talk in private about the conflict over the vampire crown but was hesitant to do so in the presence of humans, Riho Tatsuhiko Cyzarine."

"So you did what?" Riho demanded, "Froze time?"

"Put simply," Ryuichi said thoughtfully, "yes."

Riho slowly lowered her sword so the point of it was touching the ground. She couldn't believe what she had just heard.

"Normally I don't speak to the royals competing for the crown as I don't want to inadvertently give someone an advantage," Ryuichi continued, "but I thought I should introduce myself to you. Please don't expect me to interfere on your sire's behalf."

"I don't, I mean, I," Riho stopped, having no idea how to speak her mind.

Ryuichi's expression softened and he smiled gently. He clasped his hands in front of him and then bowed to Riho.

"I'm sorry," Ryuichi apologized, "I went too fast. I didn't mean to overwhelm you. I often forget how easy it is for me to startle my children the first time I meet them. Please forgive me."

"Then you," Riho said softly.

Ryuichi nodded. "I am the First One."

Riho had guessed as much since time had been stopped, but was still surprised to hear it. She looked at her sword and dematerialized it, returning it to her bloodstream.

"And I didn't stop time," Ryuichi added, "not technically. The timestream is delicate like that. I haven't stopped time so much as stretched out a single moment indefinitely, preventing the next moment from coming to pass. There isn't much of a difference I suppose, but I had to learn how to do that if I wanted to control the time flow."

Ryuichi looked away as if embarrassed.

"I tried just stopping time but that's like stopping the tides and it ended just as well for me," Ryuichi smiled softly. "Some things refuse to let _anyone_ control them. I call this space No-Time."

Riho hesitated, unsure how to treat the apology of a god – of the creator of the entire Nightwalker world.

"I did it again, didn't I?" Ryuichi sighed at Riho's baffled look as she slowly sat on the grass.

He walked over to her, sitting next to her and leaning up against her. On some reflex, Riho let him sit in her lap and wrapped her arms around him. She felt herself start to relax.

"I don't mean to frighten you," Ryuichi promised in a soft voice. "Scaring you is the last thing I want. You're one of my children. I love all of you."

"It's alright," Riho told him, stroking his black hair as she calmed. "You just startled me."

A distant part of her thought this was strange. Her god, the creator of the vampires and nightbreeds, was sitting in her lap letting her run her fingers through his hair. It seemed terribly informal to her.

Ryuichi raised his head to her. "My brothers always used to call me informal. It drove them crazy."

Riho looked at him warily, sure he had just read her thoughts. Ryuichi smiled and untangled himself from Riho, drifting back to the monkey bars. A human girl was in the process of climbing to the top of the monkey bars and now frozen on the steps. Another stood beneath the bars, looking up.

Ryuichi jumped to the top of the seven foot tall monkey bars and landed lightly on them. He turned around to face Riho with a gentle smile. The crimson coloration in his irises had overtaken the brown although his slitted cat-like pupils were an eerie white color.

"You didn't come here just to confirm who I was, did you?" Ryuichi asked. "There's something else."

"Shido just wanted me to speak with you," Riho agreed, "he didn't actually tell me what to say. I have a question though."

Ryuichi sat on the edge of the monkey bars as Riho approached. "Ask away. I won't turn down a question from one of my children although I have a feeling you have several."

"Is Ryuichi okay?"

"Of course," the First One smiled, "I'm right here."

"No," Riho shook her head, thinking he didn't understand. "I don't mean you. I mean the boy you're possessing."

The confusion on the god's face slowly cleared as he understood. "Ah, you misunderstand what I am."

"You're not just possessing Ryuichi because he's a crossbreed, First One?" Riho stumbled a bit when she said 'First One', unsure how to address him.

"Ryuichi is fine," the god shrugged, "and no, I'm not possessing him. I _am_ him. I made myself be reborn as a crossbreed named Taki Ryuichi. I do it often. It helps me keep in touch with the humans and current events, and keeps me looking young."

He giggled when he said the last few words.

"But how-?" Riho tried to ask.

"One of the perks of being a god," Ryuichi – and it was easier to consider him Ryuichi instead of First One – pointed out. "My real body is asleep on this planet. The "soul" in this boy's body is merely a fragment of my consciousness. Other pieces of my consciousness are all over the world as I watch over and converse with my Nightwalker children. And yes, I have met myself before. It's very strange."

Riho nodded slowly, not sure how to respond to that. She took pains to step around one of the running children and Ryuichi shook his head.

"You don't have to do that," Ryuichi advised her. "You've been removed from their timeline. Even if you wanted to, you couldn't interfere with them. If it were raining then you wouldn't be able to walk through the raindrops as they would be as solid and unmovable as stone. You would have to weave between them."

"Alright," Riho murmured as she thought of a new question. "How old are you?"

Ryuichi thought about it for a moment before saying. "I don't know."

"Huh?" Riho asked, taken aback. "You can't even round it to a millennium?"

"No," Ryuichi admitted. "My brothers and I – our people and our world – it's always existed. Even before that giant explosion that brought light, time, and matter to the universe."

Riho exhaled softly despite not needing to breath, trying to wrap her mind around that particular fact. Her eyes faded back to human brown. Did he mean the Big Bang by "the big explosion?" But that was over 13 billion years ago… and he said he and his people had existed before even that?

"Physically," Ryuichi continued, "my real body appears only a few years older than Shido's."

"Why do you look like a child then?" Riho asked him blankly.

"Because I love all my children," Ryuichi explained, holding his arms to either side of him as if expecting a hug. "Men aren't really comfortable with the word love though, particularly when it is applied to other men. If I tell a female Nightwalker I love her, me being a man and all, it may get misconstrued. So I use a child's form to simplify the situation. I know I confused Shido-san when I made myself appear in my real form to him instead of that of a child."

A god was using an honorific to Shido? "San?"

"Oh yes," Ryuichi smiled, kicking his heels against the open air. "He and I are old friends, although he doesn't remember because it happened back when he was human. I've met him only once when he was a vampire."

"Why would Shido be friends with you if he was human?" Riho asked seriously. "You protect the Nightwalkers which feed on humans."

"That's because Shido was-" Ryuichi stopped abruptly and shook his head. "No. I won't finish that sentence. Shido made me promise not to."

"What happened to Shido as a human?" Riho demanded. "What did he do?"

Ryuichi shook his head sadly. "I'm sorry Riho, but it seems you've turned me into a liar. I said I would answer any question, but I will not answer that. I know the answers, but I can't say them. Shido asked me not."

"Shido asked you," Riho whispered, baffled.

"Instead of asking me questions I will not speak of," Ryuichi dodged, looking away in embarrassment, "why don't you ask the question in your heart? I can tell there's one you've been harboring since you became aware of the fight for the crown. Ask me that one instead."

Riho wanted to press the situation, but she didn't think she could persuade him to reveal what happened in Shido's human life.

The question that had been bothering her was about the godling before her. The First One's power was not limited despite being in the form of Ryuichi. He could easily stop this deadly game of thrones among his Nightwalkers. He claimed he loved his children, so why did he only watch as his Nightwalkers fought, killed, and were killed?

"Why won't you do anything?" Riho asked the First One's avatar. "Why don't you help your children during the fight, or protect them? Won't you help them?"

Ryuichi closed his eyes thoughtfully and then shook his head.

"No," he announced. "I won't interfere to protect them. If they die then they die."

"You," Riho's eyes sharpened to gold again. "You intend to let them die? What kind of god are you?"

Ryuichi smiled sadly and answered without flinching, "a fallen god."

Riho took a step back as the crimson eyes flickered over to her.

"Tell your sire that I will neither help nor hamper him should he decided to participate," Ryuichi continued in the lapse, "nor will I favor one royal above another. I may be a god, but I'm not going to act like one and try to run his life. You are also friends with an NOS agent, correct?"

Riho nodded.

"I suggest you warn Yayoi that although I will not interfere with my vampires, I will not allow outside intrusion." Ryuichi's eyes flashed dangerously as his voice being icy cold. "If the NOS tries to get in the way of my children's coronation I will take steps to stop them."

Ryuichi made no motion but suddenly time began again. Riho jumped as the laughter and happy shrieks, chatter of adults, and the sound of running children suddenly pierced the air. One of the mothers gave a cry of surprise as her drink fell from her hand, the liquid splashing on the ground. She had never realized how noisy life and the clamor was strangely comforting.

Ryuichi gave her a smile as if understanding how she felt about the sounds, and ran over to his mother. Megumi was still speaking with another mother and she smiled at Ryuichi's sudden attention. Riho took advantage of the moment to compose herself, and missed Ryuichi's smile at a vampire walking by. Deion did not stop walking or show any sign of notice, but the millennia old vampire smiled. He had felt the First One touch his mind in greeting and cordially returned it.

The First One resumed his chatter with Megumi, and Riho politely made an excuse to leave. Baffled by the god's personality, she made straight for Yayoi's apartment where a phone was. As confusing as the god was, she needed to tell Shido what she had found. She also felt an urgency to pass on Ryuichi's warning to Yayoi about human interference as she felt he would keep his promise. He would not let the humans get in the Nightwalkers' way and given that he could stop time on a whim, she feared what he might do if he got serious.

Deion idly walked through the park, coming to a stop some distance from the playground. There were trees around him, and no humans in sight. One of Deion's fledglings reached out through the Bond between sire and fledgling, and Deion listened to his fledgling's report. This fledgling was still in Sângeriu, the capital city of the vampires. Sângeriu was located in Europe, not Japan, and it was only through the bond that news could be relayed so effortlessly.

Deion listened as first surprise and then despair flickered across his features. He asked his fledgling to repeat the news and his fledging duly did. There was no mistaking the news. He almost couldn't believe what had happened in Sângeriu and slowly dropped to his knees as the news sank in.

"Dead," Deion repeated what his fledgling had said. "How could he be dead?"

* * *

 **Are you surprised by the First One's personality? He's a strnage god.**

 **Deion is a high-ranking vampire, among other things. I wasn't sure how to introduce him. You'll be seeing more of him.**


	10. Dreams

_It had been an early spring day in Romania, and jade green leaves had just started to bloom across the bare branches of trees and brush. Nearly all of the snow was gone, but a few stubborn pockets remained in shadowed areas. Snowdrops and daffodils were starting to sprout and songbirds were beginning to sing. The clouds were thick overhead, but not stormy, and a warm, occasionally gusting breeze was working to try to break them up. The winter that year had been unusually long and hard, and it was only just starting to retract its icy claws from the land._

 _Cain had been kneeling on the ground that day with a woman in a blue dress draped across his lap, his teeth sunk into her throat. He was in the middle of a meal, taking advantage of the thick clouds that blocked the sun. It had been easy to enthrall the young woman and have her follow him to the outskirts of Sibiu._

 _He was nearly done eating when he became aware that someone was starting at him. Without removing his teeth from the woman's delicate throat, he raised his golden eyes. Standing less than five meters away was a male human. Humans aged quickly so it was hard for Cain to tell his age, but guessed mid-teens. It irked him that a human had managed to approach without Cain noticing and he berated himself for being too caught up in his meal._

 _The teenager was rooted in place, blue-green eyes wide and uncomprehending. His heartbeat was rapid and Cain had no trouble hearing it now that he knew it was there. It looked as if he was about to faint, a common reaction for a human who had just realized humanity was not the only sentient species. Likely he hadn't known or believed in Nightwalkers before this._

 _When Cain's eyes met his, the teenager's panic grew, and Cain tugged on the human's will, enthralling him without much trouble. The teenager's heartbeat and breathing, which had been close to hyperventilation, slowed, and he began to relax. Cain didn't want him to scream and interrupt his meal any more than it already had been._

 _His eyes flicked over the teenager, but there had no sword or scent of silver on his form. He obviously wasn't one of Abraham Van Helsing's vampire hunters. Cain noticed though that although the human's hair looked ink black, the roots were light purple. He had never seen a human with purple hair, and guessed he kept it dyed black to hide the odd coloration._

 _Cain thought about killing him. The reason he was feeding during the day, and feeding from a noblewoman, was because he wanted to goad Van Helsing into coming out from behind his Hunters so Cain could kill him. Two bodies, the noblewoman and this teenager, would get twice the reaction, but he didn't know who the teenager was. His fine clothing hinted he was an aristocrat, but that was all the more Cain could tell._

 _Making a decision, Cain removed his teeth from the woman's throat and straightened. He blinked, breaking the thrall that had enslaved the teenager's will. The human's dazed, blank eyes came into focus and he snapped to attention. He swallowed at the sight of Cain, heartrate accelerating once more. Rather than freeze, he slid a foot backwards in preparation to run. Cain smiled at him, an amused smile, exposing his elongated canines. His teeth and lips were stained red._

 _The trembling teenager turned and fled into the forest. Cain let him run. Killing two aristocrats would certainly draw Van Helsing's attention, but any vampire could do that. By letting an eyewitness leave, Van Helsing would get his description. When Van Helsing realized it was Cain, he would come. Cain would just keep killing until he did._

 _With the teenager gone, Cain lowered his head and sank his teeth into the limp woman's throat to finish his meal._

Cain opened his eyes, the memory of the first time he had met Shido fading to the back of his mind as he awoke. Someone was in his haven. He sat up in bed, sheets sliding off his bare shoulders.

Cain's current haven was an abandoned factory near the docks within Yokohama. The landing on the upper floor had turned into a bedroom, and there were multiple catwalks connected to it that let him walk without having to descend to the abandoned assembly lines on the ground floor. Sitting on the railing of one of the catwalks was a vampire dressed in human clothing with long black hair.

"Finally awake?" The vampire greeted with a smile when Cain sat up. "You really are a heavy sleeper, you know. I've been here for ten minutes and you just now detected my presence?"

Cain's drowsy, irritated expression didn't change. Without a word, he lay back down and pulled the sheet over his head. The vampire hesitated and pouted. He dropped to the catwalk and walked to stand at the foot of the king-sized bed Cain lay in.

"Don't be like that," he whined. "I came all the way over here to check up on you."

"Go away Deion," Cain warned the intruder, "it's the middle of the day. Come back after sunset."

A smile tugged at Deion's lips and he leaned forward, putting his hands on the footboard. "I just wanted to make sure you were okay. You've been in Japan for the last eight years instead of at your castle, ignoring the rest of vampire society."

There was still no response from Cain and Deion drummed his fingers on the footboard, deciding to try a different angle.

"That was a vicious fight you had with Lilith last night."

Cain rolled over so he was on his back, able to look at Deion. "You saw it."

Deion nodded. "I did. You're out of practice."

"Lilith is my sire," Cain snapped, reminding him. "It isn't easy for a fledgling to defeat their sire and most of my telekinesis is…"

He didn't finish his sentence, and Deion's golden eyes softened. Like most royals, Cain was stronger than the average vampire. Where Lilith had enhanced speed, he had telekinesis. Some vampires could manipulate elements – such as water – but could manipulate only one element. As a true, viable telekinetic, Cain had the ability to control any element he wished. He could even manipulate inanimate objects shifting their very atoms.

His affinity had concerned Lilith, and, fearful her fledgling might one day best her, she had sealed it. Although Deion and other vampires had tried, they had never learned how Lilith had managed to twist the bond between sire and fledgling. He still had some telekinesis, but it was barely enough to thicken the air into forcefields. Worse, Lilith claimed if she died the seal would become permanent.

"You didn't need your affinity to kill Jex and take ownership of his castle," Deion pointed out, citing an incident that had happened centuries ago, "but you made a mess out of that fight last night."

"You lured the vampire hunter to where I was fighting Lilith," Cain guessed. "It wasn't a coincidence he appeared and distracted her."

Deion didn't say anything.

"I don't need to be looked after," Cain warned, "now leave."

He rolled over onto his side and Deion rolled his eyes, smiling as he shook his head. Cain sure was cranky if he got woken up.

"Would you get up Cain?" Deion pressed, "something's happened in Transylvania you need to know about."

Cain gave no sign of moving. Deion was tempted to drag him out of bed.

"Cain," he repeated in a serious tone of voice he rarely used.

There was a pause and then Cain sat up. He knew Deion didn't often revert to that tone.

"What?" Cain retorted in a sharp tone.

"My eldest fledgling, Celeste, remain in Sângeriu to keep me informed of events that happen there while I'm away." Deion paused and then forced himself to continue talking. "Less than an hour ago, she told me that Abraham Van Helsing killed… killed Dimitri."

It took a few seconds for the name to sink in, and Cain's eyes flew open. Suddenly he was no longer half-asleep.

"Dimitri Krystal?" Cain demanded. "The Patriarch of Skadus clan? Abraham killed a patriarch?"

"Patriarch Dimitri Krystal Skadus was killed last night," Deion continued, sitting on the foot of the bed. "Celeste and two other vampires arrived in time to see Dimitri dusted by Abraham, but they have no idea how the patriarch was overpowered. I already had to catch Keir trying to bolt back to Romania to get revenge for the murder of his sire. I had to restrain him."

Deion nodded to the ground, where his shadow was conspicuously absent. "That's the last thing we need in the middle of the royal succession, a fight for who gets to be the new Patriarch of the Skadus Clan."

Cain growled, golden eyes flashing as he tossed aside the sheets and stood. He was dressed only in pants.

"I should have let him die," Cain told himself in a low, harsh voice. "I should never have sired him."

"Abraham was still your friend when Lilith slit his throat," Deion reminded him. "It was only natural you would save him."

"And he found a way to break the bond between sire and fledgling so I can't bring him under control," Cain cut in. "The exact opposite of what Lilith did by binding my powers."

Cain remembered seeing Shido sitting on the roof his castle, looking up at the moon. His unbound purple hair ruffled from the cool breeze that came in off the lake. The full moon's light brought out silver highlights in his hair. Sensing Cain's presence through the bond, the young vampire turned over his shoulder towards him and smiled.

Lilith standing on a roof with Shido pinned to her chest. One of her hands cupped the side of his face. Cain's silver dagger was in her other hand near his throat in preparation to decapitate him. Her challenging cry for him to show himself or she would kill Shido and Shido's mutter that Cain wouldn't rescue him. He had even asked Lilith to kill Cain, claiming she would be doing him a favor.

"I don't have enough power to do what needs to be done about those Tepes," Cain said simply.

"That's why you're trying to become king?" Deion asked.

Cain didn't answer and Deion shook his head. The problem was that Cain wasn't strong enough to kill a royal with his powers sealed. When a vampire was crowned king, the First One allowed them to feed from him. The immortals' blood gave them such a boost of power that the vampire's golden eyes turned red. That boost would likely shatter the seal on Cain's powers and allow him to wrestle Abraham under control long enough to kill him.

"Are you hoping Kyra and Lilith kill each other?" Deion asked, tilting his head towards him, gold eyes reflecting the light that filtered in through the boarded windows like a cat's.

Cain didn't answer and Deion sighed, hanging his head.

Without looking up he said, "You don't have a plan."

"When Shido left Transylvania nine years ago I gave the impression he had been killed by a renegade so no one would look for him." Cain answered on a different subject. "A young royal on his own, especially my fledgling, would have made a tempting target. The sisters know about him now. Lilith's already taken him hostage once."

"I saw," Deion promised him.

Cain shot him a frosty glare. "Why didn't you interfere? Lilith would've run if you'd appeared."

"That fight was between royals over the succession," Deion told him, lazily leaning against the footboard. "As a non-royal, I had no right to interfere."

One of Cain's eyebrows twitched. He understood Deion's reasoning and was glad at least one vampire respected the rules of the succession, but wished he wasn't always so damn honorable.

"Deion," he said slowly through gritted teeth. "Will you look after Shido until the succession is over? He's not a competitor. No one will dare approach him if he's in your custody."

Deion raised an eyebrow in surprise as Cain grabbed his white silk shirt that had been folded on a nearby tabletop and put it on. Cain asking for help was rare, but if he would do it for anyone it would be for Shido. Love was a strange thing.

"He's not a fledgling anymore," Deion pointed out.

"He's not strong enough," Cain corrected as he pulled on the shirt so it sat on him comfortably, freeing his hair from the collar with a sweep of his hand.

Deion said nothing as Cain got dressed, arms crossed over his chest.

"I can't," Deion said.

Cain paused, hand hovering near his black cloak. "What?"

"I can't look after Shido," Deion repeated, hating that he had to say this. "He's one of the royal family, and I can't interfere with the succession. I can't favor him."

"No," Cain said, glancing at him briefly before looking away. "I suppose you can't. Your loyalty is to the Sabbath first and individual vampires second. I should have known better."

Deion winced, but didn't say anything. He couldn't favor Shido or Cain until the succession ended. It might influence the outcome, and as a non-royal, he had no right to do that. He wanted to help, but he had to put his duty to the vampire government before his personal feelings.

"You've told me Dimitri is dead," Cain informed Deion in a still icy tone, "now leave my Haven. I'm sure you have something better to do."

"Cain," Deion tried to say.

"Leave," Cain repeated, not looking at him. "That's an order."

Deion straightened and bowed stiffly. "Yes, my prince."

Cain said nothing as he felt Deion's presence vanish.

He had to get to Shido, now more than ever. The murder of a Patriarch would raise panic among the vampires. They would want guidance or a plan of attack against the Hunters, but there was no king right now. This would be the perfect chance for Lilith or Kyra to take control. Normally, their fitness to lead the Sabbath would be brought into question, one blood-crazed and the other power-hungry, but Abraham's actions had forced the issue.

The twins would target Shido because he was the key to get to Cain, and both needed Cain. Lilith needed him dead and Kyra needed him alive (until she killed him) to defeat her twin. If they waited too long, the other vampires might realize their error in letting them near the crown. Any plans they'd had would now be accelerated.

Shido would be unaware of Dimitri's death and the resulting complication. Curse Deion for not telling him this earlier, and curse his neutrality. Cain had to get to Shido, before one of the twins did.

* * *

 _Shido slowly walked along the abandoned Church's nave, heading for the altar. He stopped before the altar, looking up at the stained glass rose window that shed golden light onto him. Although the interior had been taken over by cobwebs, dust, and small animals the beautiful windows remained intact. Hanging from the wall above the bare altar was a crucifix._

 _He inhaled and exhaled as he took a breath, breathing in the dry, smoke-scented summer air. The sunlight was warm. It was a beautiful church, but he couldn't understand why he was there. Was there a reason? He tried to remember why, but he couldn't recall._

 _Where was he? He stood straighter when he realized that he couldn't remember. What was his name?_

 _Panic made his heart beat faster and he looked away from the empty altar over the rest of the abandoned church. His eyes settled on a pool of blood near the Church's entrance. There wasn't a body, but the blood was fresh. Hesitant, he took a step back towards the altar._

 _"It'll be an eternal darkness," the voice behind him said._

 _Shido jumped at the voice and turned in surprise. A man was falling from the ceiling to the floor, but doing it so slowly he was nearly drifting down like a feather, arms spread to either side. His feet touched the ground as Shido took a step back, startled by the inhuman descent and the man's sudden appearance._

 _"There is no afterlife," the man said, addressed Shido directly. "Only the darkness on Earth goes on forever."_

 _The man was in his late-thirties with long and thick wavy blonde hair. Shido had never seen him before although the man looked like he recognized him. His golden eyes seemed to draw Shido in, preventing him from speaking._

 _"The humans living in light pretend not to see the darkness," the man smiled at the shortsightedness of humans, exposing sharpened canines. "But look closer. Wherever there is light, there is darkness."_

 _He was a vampire. Shido didn't know how he knew that, but he knew that was right._

 _"I shall grant you eternity," the man smiled as he took a step closer._

 _One of Shido's hands went into his jacket where his silver dagger should be, and he raised the other as if to create a wall between himself and the vampire. He knew what that sentence meant, and had no wish to give up his heartbeat. His dagger was not in its scabbard._

 _The vampire brushed Shido's hand aside, interlinking their fingers as he took a step closer. His grip was strong, and Shido knew the vampire could easily crush the bones in his hand. Panic widened his eyes. He knew he was under the vampire's thrall when he was unable to force himself to look away._

 _"Humans are nothing more than our prey," the vampire assured him, his use of "our" making the hair on the back of Shido's neck stand on end._

 _He reached out as if to stroke Shido's cheek. When Shido tried to flinch away, the vampire grabbed his chin and held his face, maintaining the eye contact Shido strove to break. Although the vampire's eyes were gentle as if he understood Shido's fear, there was no light within them. There was no soul._

 _Shido tried to throw his weight backwards, but a human like him was no match for a vampire's strength. He tried to speak, to plead with the vampire to release him or cry for help, but not a syllable escaped his lips. The thrall prevented him. It was only when the vampire turned his head towards Shido's neck that the eye contact was broken._

 _"Stop it!" Shido cried out as the vampire's fangs sank into the side of his neck._

Shido jerked awake, nearly falling out of his chair. He steadied himself, breathing in and out raggedly from the scare. He was at his office, having fallen asleep at the desk. Shido swiped a hand across his bangs, brushing them away from his forehead. Once his panic waned, the breathing reflex went away and his chest stilled.

The memory of the minutes leading up to Cain siring him was something he would rather forget. Why couldn't he forget his vampire life and all the things he'd done alongside Cain and remember his human life? Shido would rather trade his vampire memories for his human ones.

Cain had claimed Shido's human memories had disappeared due to the biological and psychological stress of being sired. Almost all fledglings lost some of their human memories when they were sired. Shido had simply been one of the extreme cases, losing all of them for a long time. That line had worked until Shido realized his memories had been gone before Cain had sired him.

The truth about his human life had always evaded him. Cain had dangled a few tantalizing hints, but never said anything concrete. Shido massaged his left temple, trying to prevent one of his headaches from reaching throbbing proportions.

He didn't know his name, or which country he was from. Even as a vampire, he'd still how to speak English, Latin, Romanian, some French, and a little Japanese. He could do advanced arithmetic, play the piano, and knew a great deal about human biology. Shido knew he had been sired sometime in the 1600's, although he didn't know which decade.

By the 1600's, Latin had become a dead language outside of the clergy and private schools. Shido was fluent in it though, which meant he was from a very religious family (he did know some parts of the Bible) or had gone to a good school. Had he been born into an aristocratic family? That would explain his schooling. Had he been a servant in an aristocrat's manor or a friend of one of the gentry? Perhaps he had been a ward adopted by one of them, or maybe one of the Church. A priest getting turned into a vampire – that was ironic enough to seem plausible, though supposed he wasn't fluent enough in the Bible for that to be true.

The main religion he knew was Christianity, but that only narrowed it down to Europe and did not explain the knowledge of Japanese. There was a great deal of information about Nightwalkers in his memory as well. He knew their weaknesses – sunlight and silver as well as garlic, and iron to a lesser degree. Vampires, unlike nightbreeds, were also repulsed by mirrors and non-royals could not enter a private residence without invitation. He had known all of that before he had become a vampire.

Shido was certain he had carried a silver dagger and when he picked up a knife at Cain's castle in the Carpathian Mountains he found he was comfortable, though not masterful, handling it. The knowledge about Nightwalkers only added to the mystery of whom he had been and what kind of life he had led as a human.

"Shido," Guni repeated.

Shido raised his head to see Guni hovering across the desk from him. She looked confused and Shido realized she must have said his name more than once.

"I'm sorry Guni," Shido apologized. "I just had an… interesting dream."

Guni rolled her pink eyes, used to Shido's lapses. She couldn't wait for Riho to come back. Shido was so distracted when his fledgling was away from him, paying more attention to the bond that linked them then his surroundings.

"Shido you need to-" Guni began to scold him.

The door to Shido's office slammed open, the glass window shattering as the door swung around and slammed into the wall. Shido jumped to his feet, eyes shifting gold out of surprise. Guni spun around.

Someone was standing in the open doorway, leaning against the doorframe. Her amber eyes glittered in amusement as she apprised Shido, moonlight reflecting off the scar over her right eye.

"Hello little prince," She greeted Shido.

Shido let his fangs sharpen. "Hello Kyra."

* * *

 **Looks like Cain was too late.**

 **The flashbacks (which are in italic) are scenes taken from the anime. Shido's flashback is from episode 1, _A Visitor in the Night_. I tried to copy it line-by-line from the scene in the episode with some extra inner thought from me. Cain's flashback is from episode 4, _The Golden Dawn_ , although all they give is a picture of Shido (as a human) looking at Cain as Cain feeds on a woman. The rest of the scene is mine.**


	11. House Dimir

Yayoi stopped by the doorway to Chairman Tao's office and waited there. She could see he was speaking with someone. Perhaps she should come back later.

Tao must have seen her when she turned to leave because he called out, "one moment Matsunaga."

Yayoi paused and Tao waved her in. She entered slowly, not recognizing the young man he was speaking to. He wasn't Japanese, European perhaps, with blue-green eyes and wavy black hair in a loose plait. There were three claw-shaped scars on the left side of his neck.

He wore a silver cross around his neck, the tips inlaid garnets. The cross's intersection was encircled with a silver aureole and there were a great many scratches etched into the arms of the cross. It was a larger cross, about the size of Yayio's palm. His cross made her guess he was a Hunter, and judging by its finery, a high-ranking one.

Yayoi had been told by one of the Hunters that each scratch on their rank cross represented one vampire kill. There were many too many scratches for Yayoi to count with a casual glance. After seeing Lupei get taken down so easily by Lilith though, Yayoi wasn't sure if she could trust he was any good. The Hunters hadn't lived up to their reputation so far in her eyes.

"This is Matsunaga Yayoi," Tao introduced her to the high-ranked Hunter. "She's one of our top operatives. Matsunaga, this is Cristian Dimir, General of the Vampire Hunter Association. He's Commander Van Helsing's second."

Yayoi raised an eyebrow when he heard the rank. "You're second in command of the Hunters?"

He looked as if he were in his late twenties, the same physical age as Shido, which was _not_ old enough to be the Hunter's General.

"I am," Dimir agreed.

"You'll pardon me if I'm surprised," Yayoi told him in an almost apologetic voice, "but you look very young."

Dimir smiled. "One of the advantages of being a vampire's general, although I assure you I am human. The commander would never inflict the curse of vampirism on anyone."

Shido had told Yayoi about the Hunters. He had lived in the Carpathian Mountains of Romania for several centuries with Cain, within the Hunter's home territory. According to Shido, the Dimir family had helped Van Helsing found the Hunters and there was always a Dimir among them.

"Is Yayoi the one who will be my guide?" Dimir turned back and asked Tao.

Yayoi felt a worm of fear at Dimir's question. She had cut her link to Shido at his behest, but Riho was in her apartment. According to what Shido had told her about the Hunters, Dimir would kill Riho if he found her. It didn't matter that she had never killed a human.

"No," Tao contradicted the Hunter. "Yayoi works mainly nightbreed cases. We don't have a large vampire problem here – not usually."

Dimir smiled at Tao's correction.

"I am simply introducing you to Matsunaga because she's here," Tao told him. "I was going to have Koyama Isoshi be your attaché. Do you need something Matsunaga?"

"Nothing that can't wait," Yayoi assured the Chairman, not intending to pass on Riho's report that Ryuichi was the First One while a Hunter was present.

"Well I'm almost done here," Tao assured her, aware of her contacts within the Nightwalker world and certain he would want to hear what she had to say. "General, how many Hunters have you brought to reinforce your numbers?"

" _Our_ numbers," Dimir corrected, "the NOS and the Association both hunt Nightwalkers. And I've brought my personal triple with me."

"Triple?" Tao said.

Dimir smiled amiably. "Ah, forgive the Hunter slang. A triple is three squads, each squad having three warriors, and their commander."

Then there were ten new Hunters, including the General. Yayoi wondered how many were now in Yokohama.

"You don't have to worry about giving my men shelter," Dimir continued, not seeming to have noticed Yayoi's surprise.

"I know," Tao assured him, "but I am curious as to how many of your men are here."

"Many," Dimir told him with a smile. "It often takes more than one human working together to bring down a vampire."

He sounded like he was talking about bringing down a buck. Irked by how he was dehumanizing vampires, Yayoi couldn't help but speak up.

"I mean no offense," Yayoi began, trying to be respectfully, which wasn't easy. "But one of your A-Grade Hunters was nearly killed last night."

"You doubt our ability." Dimir spoke it as a statement and not a question.

"Yes," Yayoi answered anyway.

Dimir smiled as he nodded thoughtfully. "Would it interest you to know that Lupei killed two vampires last night before he made the mistake of tackling Lilith?"

Yayoi felt her blood chill, although forced herself not to show it. Two vampires? Had they been vampires like Shido and Riho or ones like Cain?

Dimir continued speaking, glancing between Yayoi and Tao. "There are four vampire clans still in existence: Skadus, Nosferatu, Sălbatic, and Cyzarine. Cyzarine is known as the royal clan. There are rarely more than a dozen vampires of this clan in existence at any given time, but they are the most powerful. Lilith is Cyzarine. Lupei should have known better then to go after one of the Princesses without backup."

"What do you mean still in existence?" Tao asked curiously, "and why are the royals so much stronger than the others?"

"To answer your first question," Dimir began, amused by the plethora of questions. "There used to be five vampire clans, but the fifth was exterminated during a civil war among the vampires eight millennia or so ago."

"As to your second point, well," Dimir smiled cordially, brushing one of his bangs behind his ear. "Cyzarine clan vampires are stronger than others. One of their number always rules over the Sabbath."

"Sabbath?" Tao interrupted.

Yayoi had to bite her cheek to keep from answering her commander. Revealing her knowledge of the Nightwalker world to a Hunter would not be good. Dimir would want to know where she had learned that and she could hardly say Shido.

"The Americans call their government a Republic," Dimir used an example from Tao's homeland. "Sabbath is the vampire's government. The ruler is a King, one of the Cyzarine. Their council is made of the three Patriarchs from the other clans who stand as leader for their clan."

He went on when Tao nodded that he understood.

"During a succession, all but one royal is usually killed," Dimir tilted is head to one side. "I suppose it's like the last one standing in a battle royal. The winner will drink from the First One and become king."

"Isn't the First One their god?" Tao interrupted again.

Dimir didn't seem to mind the interruption. "Yes. He's also an immortal, which makes the vampire who feed from him a demigod."

Tao's jaw dropped slightly and Dimir nodded agreement to the sentiment. "That's exactly why it was so foolish for Lupei to fight a royal. I will need all of my triple's help to kill Lilith, but it can be done. My sister and some of her triple recently helped Commander Van Helsing kill Dimitri, the Patriarch of the Skadus Clan, so believe me when I tell you these creatures can be killed."

"I'll believe you," Tao said after a long second of silence.

Dimir smirked at Tao's future tense. He'd believe it when he saw it. Well, Tao would see it before long.

Koyama Isoshi appeared behind Yayoi and cleared his throat. Tao quickly introduced him to the General, and Dimir said goodbye. He walked past Yayoi as he left Tao's office and Yayoi couldn't entirely stop herself from looking at him. Dimir met her gaze without flinching and gave her an easy smile. As benign as his smile was, he made her skin crawl.

"Now," Tao's eyes flicked to Yayoi as Dimir left. "I can tell from your eyes that you have something to report. What is it?"

Cristian Dimir maintained a cordial exterior as Ioshi quickly debriefed him on NOS assets. No, he corrected himself, not Ioshi. His family name was Koyama, but Japanese put their family name first and first name second. It was backwards, and incredibly bizarre. Why couldn't they just arrange their names like the rest of the civilized world?

Dimir smiled and nodded at Koyama, remembering Van Helsing's order to "play nice." As naïve and bizarre as the NOS were, they were still allies in the fight against Nightwalkers.

Koyama didn't have much to brief him about and Dimir assured him he could be reached on his cell phone if the NOS got a lead on vampire activity. Once he finally ditched the Japanese man, Dimir sat outside and leaned against the wall of the building, eyes closed and arms crossed over his chest. His partner reached out without needing to be told to contact the other Hunters. Each Hunter had a partner and it was surprisingly easy to recruit these partners.

 _'An NOS agent is in contact with a vampire,'_ Dimir spoke without moving his lips, _'Yayoi Matsunaga. I need someone to tail her.'_

 _'NOS?'_ One of the other Hunters responded in a baffled tone. _'They're supposed to be allies.'_

 _'Most of them are, Rusev,'_ Dimir responded to the Hunter from the Association's Bulgarian branch. _'But this one had a vampire's scent on her. I believe she's a donor.'_

A few of the other Hunters who had responded to Dimir's summons muttered under their breaths while Rusev blanched. It was hard to understand how a human could betray their species by allowing a vampire to feed from them. It was likely the promise of a vampire's immortality, a common ploy. The donor was rarely sired however, and used until the vampire got bored of the taste of their blood. Then the vampire would kill them and move to another donor, luring them to them with the same promise.

 _'Does she know what she's getting into – being a donor?'_ Kis, a Hungarian vampire Hunter, asked.

 _'Unknown,'_ Dimir responded.

Some donors were innocent dreamers or otherwise under the vampire's thrall and needed to be rescued. Others knew _exactly_ what they were helping survive. The latter type were traitors to humanity.

 _'That's why I need a shadow for her,'_ Dimir continued. _'Tao mentioned she's an expert in dealing with breed cases, and has been for years.'_

 _'No offense to the NOS,'_ Rusev muttered, _'but they're beginners. The only thing they have going for them are silver-coated bullets and the knowledge that Nightwalkers exist. I doubt one of them could survive hunting breeds for years.'_

 _'Unless they had a vampire helping,'_ Kis sighed. _'I get it.'_

Vampires and nightbreeds might both be Nightwalkers and they might both have been made by the First One, but they did _not_ get along. It was relatively common for a vampire to hunt nightbreeds.

 _'And in exchange for his help, Matsunaga lets him feed,'_ Dimir finished. _'Yes that does seem to be the case.'_

 _'It sounds like she's a wiling participate, not a thrall,'_ a third Hunter, a fellow Romanian, chimed in. _'That makes her a traitor.'_

 _'I know,'_ Dimir agreed, _'but I'm interested in knowing which vampire she'd feeding. There are many high-ranking ticks in the city currently. By looking at a thrall's mind, we can glean information of their master's whereabouts.'_

 _'I can tail her,'_ Kis spoke up. _'My sector's quiet. Any other orders general?'_

 _'Negative,'_ Dimir mentally shook his head. _'You know the route. If she's a thrall, catch her, get the information on her master, and kill him. That will free her. If she's a traitor, kill her and the vampire. Remember, our primary job is to kill vampires. It's be better to kill a possible innocent then-'_

 _'Then let a guilty human escape,'_ Kis finished for him with a chuckle. _'I know, I know. That's one of the first things Van Helsing drummed in our skulls. I'll shadow her.'_

Kis's presence in Dimir's mind vanished and Dimir accepted a quick status report from the ten other Hunters he was in a conversation with. It was positive news, more vampire kills, more nightbreeds fleeing the vampire population and moving to somewhere less crowded, but no mention of Lilith. A German Hunter warned he thought he saw Deion, and relayed the date and location of the sighting. From the image in his memory he showed, it seemed likely it was Deion. He was one of the only vampires old enough to move about during the day without being bothered by sunlight, having outgrown the weakness.

Once the report was finished and a trio of Hunters dispatched to the place where Deion had been seen, Dimir left the telepathic conversation and opened his eyes. Only a few minutes had passed since he had sat down to speak to his warriors. His partner whined he was hungry and Dimir didn't blame him. Speaking to so many hunters spread out over such a large territory at once was taxing, and this was not the first time today Dimir had spoken to them.

He promised his partner something to eat after he checked in on Lupei as he stood, to which his partner agreed. Dimir wished he could simply leap from rooftop to rooftop, but since it was day, he was relegated to moving like a human. So he took his motorcycle key out of his pocket and used the vehicle to traverse the roads to the hospital where Lupei was being held.

"Hello," Dimir greeted one of the nurses in Intensive Care once he made it there, smiling. "I'm a friend of Stefan Lupei. Could you show me where his room is?"

The nurse blushed when she saw him and nodded, quickly pointing him to the room.

"Thank you, my dear," Dimir smiled again at her.

The color raising to her cheeks, the nurse scurried away. Dimir let the woman leave and entered Lupei's room. He wasn't on life support anymore, but looked like he was asleep. His heartbeat and breathing were slow enough to support that conclusion, but Dimir heard a voice in his head as Lupei's partner contacted Dimir's.

The partners greeted each other and then linked Dimir to Lupei's thoughts. As Lupei slept, his battered and lacerated body recuperating, his mind bowed in acknowledgment to Dimir.

 _'General,'_ Lupei greeted respectfully, sounding a little startled _. 'I wasn't expecting to hear from you.'_

 _'I seem to be getting that from all the Hunters,'_ Dimir said dryly _. 'Lupei, I wanted to hear about your fight with Lilith.'_

 _'I know I shouldn't have engaged the Princess,'_ Lupei began, _'I-'_

 _'I think you've learned your lesson about attacking a royal without backup,'_ Dimir interrupted. _'I want to know if you saw other vampires. I believe Deion's presence in the city will soon be confirmed, and I want to know if you've seen any other vampires of interest.'_

 _'Prince Cain,'_ Lupei said. _'He was fighting with Lilith shortly before I engaged her.'_

 _'It's only fitting that all three of the royals be here,'_ Dimir shrugged mentally. _'We've already caught sight of Princess Kyra.'_

 _'Four,'_ Lupei corrected.

"Huh?" Dimir spoke the confused syllable aloud instead of telepathically.

 _'Lilith used Cain's fledgling as bait to draw him out,'_ Lupei continued.

 _'We've neutralized all three of his fledglings,'_ Dimir contradicted.

 _'We thought so,'_ Lupei sighed. _'The vampire Lilith used as bait had purple hair.'_

Dimir frowned for a moment, but then his eyebrows shot up as he realized who Lupei meant. ' _Oh! You mean, he's alive? Stars, we thought he died a decade ago!'_

 _'Misinformation spread by Cain most likely,'_ Lupei said sympathetically.

There was only one human the Hunters knew of who was born with purple hair. He was a traitor, having sided with the vampires, lured by the promise of immortality. The things he had done to help the vampires… the humans he had directly and indirectly killed… had made him one of the Hunters' most wanted. In the end he had been of such great value to the vampires that not only had they sired him, his sire had been a royal.

"Shido," Dimir whispered as if in awe, murmuring the name he went by as a vampire. "He's alive."

 _'As alive as any of those leeches can be,'_ Lupei agreed.

Dimir's lips curled into a smile, "perfect."

* * *

 **Perfect? What's perfect? Oh dear, what did Shido do to infuriate the Hunters so much? He certainly can't remember. What do you think of the Hunters? Mildly cold-blooded, hmm?**


	12. Rite

Prince Shido Tatsuhiko stood across the room from Princess Kyra Tepes, a blood blade in his hand and Guni hovering by his shoulder. Kyra was unarmed.

"Are you going to strike me?" Kyra asked, nodding at his blade. "I could believe that. You always were damningly bold. I think that's one of the reasons Cain liked you as a human. You never knew when to shut up, even when faced with a superior opponent."

"Leave," Shido ordered Kyra, sliding into a fighting stance and bringing his sword into position. "This is _my_ Haven."

"Although there are times where your impudence gets annoying," Kyra observed with a sigh.

She walked further inside and sat in one of the chairs, giving Shido no heed. She put her feet up on the coffee table.

"No fledgling?" She asked, tilting her head and glancing around. "I hope the Hunters didn't get her. They're descending on this city like a swarm of mosquitos. From everything I've heard, losing a fledgling is no fun."

"Why are you here?" Shido demanded.

"Oh come now Shido, really," Kyra rolled her eyes, human amber. "If I wanted you dead I would have killed you already."

Shido supposed that was true and lowered the sword, dissolving it back into a liquid and absorbing it into his veins. Guni looked infuriated but didn't say anything, likely remembering how Kyra had almost killed her last time.

"I came here to propose a truce," Kyra informed him in a very cordial tone.

"A truce?" Shido demanded. "With you? You tried to kill me!"

"I did?" Kyra repeated blankly, "when?"

Shido stared at Kyra, unable to believe her. " _When_?"

"Yes," Kyra repeated. "I don't remember attacking you since you were sired."

Shido felt one of his eyebrows twitch. "Oh, and you attacked me when I was human?"

Kyra smirked without answering, and Shido closed his eyes. He took a breath to calm himself.

"When I was still a fledgling, you came to Cain's castle," Shido repeated. "You attacked me, and Cain watched. I didn't show you the proper respect."

Kyra blinked once blankly. "That sounds like Lilith."

"Lilith's face isn't scarred," Shido told her flatly. "Besides, she shapes her blood into a scythe. You use two shortswords. You mentioned it last time you were here!"

Kyra leaned back against the sofa, staring at the plaster ceiling. "I attacked you at Cain's castle? Oh!"

She straightened, looking at him.

"That," she smiled, "but you're a little off. You mistook me for Lilith and attacked me. I suppose I did bash you around a bit, but you had it coming. Cain made me cool my heels before I killed you."

Shido stared at her blankly. "I attacked you? That's not how I remember it."

Kyra stared at him hard for a second and then sighed, looking away. "No, is suppose it isn't. Cain's far too good at altering memories. I swear, he loves mind games as much as his sire."

Shido paled when Kyra mentioned altering memories. He knew Cain had suppressed his human memories, but didn't know he'd altered his vampiric memories. Of course, he was assuming Kyra was telling the truth. A sinking sensation stuck in his stomach and for some reason he felt she was being honest.

Kyra apprised Shido. He honestly didn't seem to remember ambushing her.

 _She hadn't expected Shido to ambush her from behind, trying to decapitate her with his blood blade. She'd dodged his attempt and grabbed his forearm, crushing the bone and forcing him to drop the blade before throwing him into a table and reducing it to splinters._

 _'Stop!' Cain had called out, racing to place himself between Kyra and Shido before she hit his fledgling again. 'Kyra!'_

 _She hadn't been able to pull the blow back in time to keep from hitting Cain. He'd thickened the air to create a forcefield, which had absorbed most of the strength behind her blow, but she'd still sent him sliding backwards._

"I don't know what triggered you," Kyra admitted, "but I suppose your attack had something to do with Cain returning your human memories."

Shido felt his limbs lock and Guni said, "eh?"

"Cain explained it to me after I knocked you out," Kyra told him. "He was resealing your human memories at the time."

Shido sank into his chair as Kyra kept speaking. She was smiling lightly, as if amused by Shido's reaction. Guni didn't like it.

"You wanted them back so badly, so Cain finally gave in and restored them," Kyra chuckled. "I don't know what you remembered, but it must have been something terrible for you to snap as you did. Of course, Cain would alter your memories so you wouldn't think he was to blame. _That_ sounds like him. He asked me to go along with the idea that I attacked you that night to hide what had happened and I did so. It cost me nothing and Cain owed me a favor."

"My memories?" Shido whispered, slowly sinking back into his seat. "He restored my memories?"

"Yes," Kyra sighed, "human you couldn't stand remembering what you had done so you asked him to seal them. After your memories were gone you begged to have them back. He knew you couldn't stand them so he didn't, until finally he gave in right before I dropped by for a visit. What, you never thought you might not want those memories?"

Shido dug his fingernails into his palms, feeling blood run between his fingers. No, he hadn't, and that didn't give Kyra the right to poke fun at him for it.

"Why are you telling me this now?" Shido said darkly.

"The playing field's changed," Kyra shrugged. "I figure clearing up the misunderstanding will make you more receptive when I told you I'm here for a truce."

Shido glared at her but Kyra continued speaking.

"I won't kill you or your fledgling if you help me track down Cain," Kyra proposed. "The boost I'll get from draining him will be enough to let me overpower my sister."

"And why would you spare us?" Shido retorted bitterly. "During every succession, royals fight to the death for the crown. Whoever becomes king kills the other royals so they won't have competition. Why _wouldn't_ you do that?"

"Because I don't have any fledglings you fool," Kyra pointed out in a strangely cordial voice. "And because when it comes to tracking Cain my sister has a _bit_ of an advantage – him being her get and all."

Shido listened silently, hostility alight in his gold eyes.

"I don't want to sire any fledglings," Kyra explained. "If I kill the other royals I'll have to in order to continue my clan. Since I'd rather not be forced into that situation, it would be easier to just leave you and Riho alive. Think about it this way Shido, after I die you'll be the oldest royal vampire, and in a perfect position to become king. You'd be able to do your humans a great amount of good."

Yes, Shido thought to himself, but in order to do that he'd need to reintegrate with the rest of vampiric society and he much preferred being a loner. If he spent too much time around other vampires he'd inevitably start acting more like them.

"I'm fine by myself," Shido argued.

"That's not one of the choices," Kyra wagged a finger at him. "You and Riho are either going to have to stand in as my heirs or I'll kill you as competition and have to have fledglings of my own. Neither you nor I want the latter situation to come to pass."

Her amber human eyes turned vampire gold and she smiled, canines sharpened.

Shido clenched his teeth together. How had he been forced into this situation? He wished he was one of the Nosferatu clan as Cain had initially said he was. This would not be happening to him or Riho then, especially not Riho. Of all the vampires out there, why had it been Cain who had stolen his heartbeat?

There was no way he was strong enough to defeat Kyra and certainly no way he could protect Riho. If he allied himself with her, he'd be betting she won the succession. He realized that if she didn't win he'd be dead anyway. Lilith would kill him, he didn't doubt that as he recalled his encounter with her some nights ago, chilled. Cain's victory would mean Shido's enslavement.

As King, Cain could use Absolute Command and give an order that Shido, as a vampire, could not ignore, no matter what that order was. He could even tell him to kill Riho and Shido would have to. No one had ever resisted a King's Command before.

Was Kyra his only choice? Even with her he'd have to rejoin the Sabbath and get entangled in their politics and blood feuds, alliances and arguments. He'd have to accept the title as Prince Heir and Shido didn't even _want_ to be a vampire. Could he do nothing more than what he was ordered? Did he have no choice of his own?

Perhaps if he didn't have Riho he would say no, but he couldn't endanger her just because he was too selfish to accept his bloodline. Shido swallowed, lowering his head. Could he truly not run away from his destiny as a royal? Oh, how the First One must be laughing. He'd concocted the perfect situation to force Shido to the Sabbath he'd turned his back on. It suddenly seemed an unlikely coincidence that Yokohama had become the succession's battlefield. Anywhere else and Shido could have ignored it and continued on how he was.

"Will you vow not to harm Riho or I if I help you find Cain?" Shido whispered.

"Shido?" Guni blinked in surprise.

Shido couldn't bring himself to raise his head and return his friend's confused expression.

"Oh?" Kyra snickered, "you aren't going to ask me to spare your sire? So cold-blooded. You're most certainly of Lilith's bloodline."

"Will you?" Shido repeated in a slightly sharper tone, looking at her through his bangs.

He was serious, Guni realized with shock. He really was going to trust this power-crazed chit.

Kyra let a smile spread victoriously, moonlight reflecting off her fangs. "I vow."

* * *

Deion walked slowly across the park, arms crossed over his chest. He wasn't sure what to do. He had taken Lilith's place as Cain's sire but the simple fact was that Cain was royal. It wasn't fair that he couldn't help his foster fledgling as he _could_ stitch both Kyra and Lilith if he wanted. He didn't think he'd ever forget the look Cain had when he said he wouldn't protect Shido. Sometimes he truly hated the Sabbath.

He stopped walking near a fountain, the babble of running water filling his senses, and looked up. The night sky was clear and the full moon bright, but there were so many streetlights he had a difficult time making out stars. Humans were such wasteful, uncaring creatures. He couldn't wait until the succession was over and he returned to the capital. Perhaps he should go now. He wasn't permitted to interfere and with the death of a Patriarch it might be best for him to return.

No matter what he decided, first things first.

"Please stop stalking me," Deion spoke aloud, projecting his voice across the park. "Hunting vampires is very different from hunting humans. I know you're there."

Three vampires walked from the shadows of the trees, arraying themselves in a half-circle around him. As Deion had suspected for the past few minutes, he was being shadowed. He lowered his gaze from the moon to them, seeing greed, not hunger, illuminating their golden gaze. Their bodies were in their late-teens, a male and two females. They dressed casually in human clothing: jeans, sneakers, t-shirts, and jackets.

"What are you three doing?" Deion asked them flatly, speaking in Japanese.

"You're Nosferatu clan right?" The male vampire, with bright red hair and freckles, challenged. He spoke in English. "You don't have a shadow."

Deion, guessing they hadn't recognized who he was, inclined his head, seeing no harm in humoring them. His shadow was currently keeping Keir trapped so he couldn't race back to Transylvania and avenge his sire.

"I thought so," the speaker smiled. "You Nosferatu's are the only ones that can manipulate your shadow. Well, you and nightbreeds."

Deion sighed, mildly irritated. He disliked the comparison, even if it was true. Breeds were subhuman. Vampires were above humans.

"And who would _you_ be?" He asked the red-haired speaker, switching to English.

"Dillion," the leader returned with a smirk. "You should mind your manners Nosferatu. Without a shadow to animate, you can't do much."

Deion rubbed one of his temples. "Must this happen _every_ time there is a royal succession?"

"Must what?" Dillion asked impatiently.

"Every time a new king is being chosen members of the other clans try to capitalize on the chaos." Deion fixed a glare on Dillion, the frustration in it making the American vampire take a step back. "Someone _not of royal blood_ thinks they can establish themselves as king. I suggest you return to your hunting grounds fledgling."

"Fledgling?" Dillion sputtered, taking two steps forward. "I'm no fledgling."

He raised his hands and swept them upward, feet sliding apart as he fell into stance. Deion's eyes flickered to the right and he watched the water from the fountain obey Dillion's command. Dillion brought his hands close to his chest and the water rose. It came to hover behind him, rippling in endless motion but never losing its roughly spherical shape. By splitting his fingers apart and holding his arms out to either side of him he coaxed the water he had taken to break apart into a dozen smaller sphere that hovered around him. Dillion curled his fingers to his palms and the water turned to icy spears.

"I take it you're from the Skadus clan then," Deion remarked dryly.

All vampires had a set of standard abilities: night vision, wallclimbing, and the ability to shape blood into weapons. Each of the clans had a different bloodline trait though. 55% of blood was water and members of the Skadus clan could isolate and manipulate water as easily as blood. The two with Dillion didn't draw on the water so either they weren't Skadus or hadn't developed the ability yet.

"I'll show you proper respect," Dillion snarled.

"Oh?" Deion raised an eyebrow quizzically, "you will?"

The shadows of the trees, fountain became a darker and deeper black, shape shifting despite the fact the shadows' owner did not move.

Dillion scowled and shifted his weight forward, arms raising to cast his attack. The shadows around them left the ground, shaping into spears that struck Dillion before he could finish the move. Each shadow split into a dozen different tendrils that wrapped around the vampires, pinning them in place. Deion resisted the urge to have the multitude of tendrils skewer them instead. Dillion's water fell to the ground and Deion couldn't resist having one of the shadow tendrils skewer through his palms and literally sew them together with a few neat stitches.

Deion gave them a sly smile as they shrieked in surprise. Dillion was doubled over in pain, his palms pressed together as if praying, unable to separate them. He succeeded in shifting his eyes up to Deion after a few seconds, bound so totally in the tendrils he was unable to raise his head.

"How?" He whispered, barely able to get that syllable through his lips.

Deion smiled. "As I said fledgling, you're out of your league. It might be best if you returned to your hunting grounds. If nothing else, you should take care who you try to ambush."

"Nosferatu can only manipulate their own shadow!" Dillion cried out.

"Younger ones, yes," Deion agreed. "Though I'm probably the only one old enough to create and manipulate any darkness. I could have even used your own shadows to net you, but it disturbs vampires when their own shadow is turned against them. That's one of the advantages of my clan's bloodline trait. You need to move to control your water. I do not to control darkness."

Dillion had gone stiff, exhibiting a total stillness that humans, with beating heart and flowing blood, could only envy.

"You're Deion," he whispered.

Deion inclined his head in agreement. He thought Dillion would faint. Had he been human, he probably would have.

"You made us attack the Patriarch of the Nosferatu Clan!" One of Dillion's friends hissed, "the oldest vampire in the Sabbath!"

"I didn't know it was him," Dillion hissed back. "He looks different than I heard."

Deion chuckled at the young vampires' dismay. "Silver is a strange color for a human's hair, so I dyed it to better blend with them. I also changed my clothing."

Dillion would have hung his head had he been able to move his neck, recognizing he had just signed the deaths of himself and hunting partners. There was nothing to stop Deion from using the shadows entangling them to crush every bone in their body, or sharpen them to cut their bodies to shreds, or tear off their limbs, or destroy their hearts and kill them. If he could move he might be able to do something, but he couldn't. To think Deion had rendered the three of them helpless without batting an eye, without even needing his own shadow. No wonder he was the leader of the Nosferatu clan.

After staring at them for a long second, Deion ended his hold on the darkness. The shadows sank into the ground and left the vampires, returning to their original positions by the trees, underbrush, and fountain. Suddenly freed, the vampires staggered and nearly fell. They recovered and looked up at Deion with huge, wary, scared eyes, Dillion massaging his bleeding hands as the wounds closed.

"I take no pleasure in killing kin," Deion explained with a shrug, "but I will be staying in Yokohama until the succession is over and I will not allow intrusion. Keep that in mind if you decide to stay."

He looked away and the Skadus barely glanced at each other before fleeing. Deion chuckled as they vanished from sight a moment later.

"I suppose that's why I haven't returned to Sângeriu," he mused to himself. "I'm not permitted to help Cain directly but I can at least make sure he's not distracted by troublemakers."

He turned on his heel and resumed his sanguine walk to his Haven where Keir was imprisoned. There was still the task of convincing him not to run back to Transylvania. As tempting as it seemed otherwise, he couldn't keep Keir locked up with his shadow forever.

He stopped walking, glancing to one side at the sight of Ryuichi.

"How long have you been there?" He asked, puzzled as he hadn't sensed the halfbreed's presence.

"Long enough," Ryuichi smiled.

"First One," Deion sighed, aware Ryuichi was merely an alias. "Isn't Ryuichi's mother going to be upset if she finds you're not in bed? It's nearly midnight."

"Whatever do you mean? I am in bed." Ryuichi told his Patriarch with wide, innocent eyes and then smirked. "Honestly, you make it sound like it's hard for me to be in two places at once."

"Pardon," Deion apologized with a smile at his lapse. "Are you here to help me referee or observe your children, Father?"

"Second," Ryuichi answered. "It is easy to hide your true heart while sitting around talking, but the stress of battle has a tendency to bring what is in a person's heart to the surface for all to see. That's why I don't mind the fact you've turned the successions into battles, though I wish you weren't so vicious with each other."

Deion smiled at his god's pleading tone. "We vampires _are_ predators, Father."

"I know," Ryuichi sighed, "but I can wish."

"Will you help me talk to Keir?" Deion asked. "I'd like to have my shadow back."

Ryuichi gave a wry smile at Deion's tone. "I don't know if he'll listen. The grief of losing one's sire runs deep. I will try though."

"That's all I ask," Deion smiled.

Ryuichi paused suddenly and Deion turned his way as he frowned.

"Hunters," Ryuichi muttered.

"Where?" Deion asked seriously.

"Not here," his god replied, "they're going after a pair from the Sălbatic Clan. Give me a moment."

Deion nodded.

* * *

The Sălbatic vampire slid to a stop as he landed on the rooftop, wind-red cloak hanging from his shoulders in shreds, as he caught sight of the pair of Hunters that had somehow gotten in front of him. He tightened his grip on his unconscious fledgling he was carrying on his back. He stopped and looked behind him only to see the three Hunters that had been chasing him catch up.

He hadn't taken the stories about Van Helsing's Hunters seriously, assuming that as humans they were no threat. One of them who had stopped a building behind him casually jumped forward twelve feet and landed on the building where he was, not even needing a running start. Whatever they were, they were no longer human. He could tell they weren't vampires like he, so how were they able to match pace? How had they been able to come so close he hadn't realized they were there until his fledgling fell?

He hissed at the Hunter that had landed on the roof near him. The Hunter smiled, raising his silver-edged sword. As he feared, he'd have to put down his fledgling and fight, but there were five Hunters now. He doubted he could sufficiently occupy all five of them. At least one would be free to finish off his fledgling.

"It's a pity," the lead Hunter chuckled, taking a few steps closer to him. "You weren't much fun at all, leech. Sălbatic's like you can do things with blood other vampires can't dream of, and yet, blood is blood, and a bit of silver poisoning makes it crumble."

What should he do? His fledgling was unconscious because of his arrogance, was it going to kill her as well? _Why_ couldn't he use his clan's bloodline trait? Why could he only use basic blood manipulations?

"You Hunters _are_ going to make me get involved," a new voice broke over, and both Hunter and vampire glanced at the source. "I thought as much."

The Sălbatic felt the aura of the speaker, heard the sound of feathers rustling, and realized with relief he knew who had interrupted them. The small Japanese boy that had appeared on the roof was no human.

"Who are you?" The lead Hunter demanded.

"My children call me the First One, Rusev," the boy answered cordially.

The Hunter was surprised again to hear his name used, and even further shocked by who the boy said he was. "You're a god?"

"Of course," the boy smiled. "This body is called Ryuichi."

Ryuichi looked from the baffled Hunter to the vampires.

"One moment, Alister," he smiled at the Sălbatic carrying his fledgling.

Alister bowed his head in acceptance, glancing around at the other Hunters. They had come closer.

"There's no way you're the ticks' god," Rusev argued, "you're a boy."

"I look how I wish to look," Ryuichi shrugged, "and the name my children have chosen for themselves is vampire, human."

Rusev felt his skin crawl at the boy's aura and let one of his silver throwing knives fall to his palm, sending it at Ryuichi with one smooth move. The knife caught him in the chest and Ryuichi looked down at it curiously, blinking in surprise. Alister grimaced though Ryuichi gave no indication of pain.

"Remarkable," Ryuichi observed as he stared at the knife. "To think a mere mortal would try to kill me. Van Helsing's entertaining attitude has certainly rubbed off on you."

The boy looked up at him with a smile, amused. Rusev took a step back, bringing his sword up sharply at the innocent smile. There was no blood from the wound coloring Ryuichi's shirt.

"However," the god's gaze became cold and serious, the dark brown replaced by a rich crimson. "My children are quite a bit more mortal. Be gone!"

He narrowed his eyes and a wave of raw telekinetic force leapt from him at Rusev. Rusev's jacket snapped backward briefly, caught in the momentum. The next instant, he was blown backwards, his body disintegrated even as it moved through the air, blood spraying through the air in an arc as the flesh was obliterated. Drops of blood and tiny scraps of flesh and cloth fell to the ground, all that was left of Rusev. His saber spun end over end and embedded itself nearly hilt-deep in the cement building behind him.

"Oh," Ryuichi observed as he looked down at the knife in his chest, "I'm amazed his sword survived."

The knife gleamed silver, unstained, as it removed itself from his chest and fell to the ground near him, the tear in his clothing mending. He raised his cold crimson eyes, overlooking the other Hunters. They stepped back. Alister stared up at him as well, stunned and relieved, a smile starting to form. His smile exposed fangs.

"This is the first succession we've had since Van Helsing was sired," Ryuichi mused, "and I must admit I'm not surprised he involved his Hunters. In case you don't know humans, let me explain it. This is a sacred time. Despite the chaos that surrounds it, only royal vampires are permitted to kill and then only each other. Non-royal vampires are protected during a succession to avoid unneeded causalities. As long as they do not kill, they are not permitted to be killed. If they kill, that protection ends and their life becomes forfeit. Those who would disregard such a basic rite of ours and kill needlessly at this time do not live long – the other vampires make sure of that. You Hunters have forfeited the rite's protection."

He raised his hands as he said the word _protection_ , condensing the water from the atmosphere into icy shards near him. The Hunters tried to back away but shadowy tendrils from nearby darkness caught their wrists and ankles, holding them fast. Alister watched in awe as Ryuichi used bloodline traits from the clans simultaneously. He'd heard the First One had the combined abilities of all his Nightwalker children, but this was the first time he'd seen it in action.

The ice shards flew through the air at the two of the Hunters to Ryuichi's right, carrying so much force they punched through the humans' bodies, leaving fist size holes as the bodies topple over backwards. One of the Hunters to Ryuichi's left closed his eyes as his shadow came to life, tearing through the bindings imprisoning him and his partner as they both fled.

Ryuichi flung out his hand at one, sliding his foot back and raising his arms, fingers curled to his claws as he sharply pulled his hands back. One Hunter froze, muscles locking, unable to move. The First One gave a wicked smile as he sharply jerked his arms to the left, forcing the Hunter to turn around to face him. Alister's eyes widened. That was Blood Marionette! It was a high-level technique only his clan, with their enhanced affinity for blood, could do. By controlling the blood inside another person's body, one could control their muscle's movements, essentially turning a person into their puppet.

He twisted his wrist, drawing the arm closer to his chest, forcing the human to lower his hand to his side where a pistol with silver bullets was sheathed. Ryuichi stiffened his fingers to his palm and the human's wrapped around the finger's grip. As Ryuichi's hand came up, so did the pistol. The human was starting to hyperventilate, but Ryuichi had paralyzed his vocal cords. The Hunter closed his eyes as Ryuichi forced him to put his gun's muzzle under his chin. With a smile, the First One tightened his fingers, forcing him to pull the trigger. There was no silencer, so the thud of the bullet being shot was loud.

The First One relaxed his stance and straightened. Free, the human's body toppled off the roof and fell to the alley beneath.

"Not bad," Ryuichi critiqued himself. "Are you alright Alister?"

"Yes my liege," Alister murmured softly, "but Thalia."

He shifted his fledgling off his back, cradling the young woman against his chest. Ryuichi was suddenly by Alister's side and Alister knelt, allowing the First One to look at his fledgling. The Hunter who had ambushed her has narrowly missed her heart with his longsword, but there was still significant silver in her blood, lethal levels for a three-year-old vampire.

Ryuichi touched her chest and Alister watched as the wound healed. Through the Bond he had with her he felt her pain taper off and end. He exhaled out of reflex, relieved.

"Thank you, my liege," he told the First One seriously.

"Ryuichi is fine," Ryuichi argued with a smile, also touching him.

Alister had forgotten about the wound on his side, so concerned with getting Thalia away. The wound healed, the silver in his blood purifying. Ryuichi nodded when Alister found he was able to move easier.

"I'm surprised to see one of Varian's children here," Ryuichi admitted. "He normally stays away from successions because of how dangerous they can be if killing starts."

Alister wasn't surprised Ryuichi knew his sire's name. "Why are the Hunters here? Surely Van Helsing warned them about the succession rite and the law of safe observance for non-royals."

"He probably thought that since his Hunters are mostly human I wouldn't kill them for breaking the rite," Ryuichi supposed, "not that they're humans anymore."

"Is that why you let one of the Hunters get away?" Alister asked seriously.

"Yes," Ryuichi agreed. "If Van Helsing didn't know before he will now. I don't understand why he's not here himself. He's of the royal clan and has a valid claim to the throne, yet sends only his Hunters. Will you and your fledgling be alright?"

"Yes my liege," Alister bowed as well as he could as he was already kneeling.

"Though," Ryuichi added pointedly, "you're nary more than a fledgling yourself."

Alister looked away, embarrassed. He was too pale to blush properly, but two penny-sized spots of red appeared on his cheeks. Varian hadn't been pleased that a vampire as young as him had sired Thalia either.

"Take care of yourself," Ryuichi sighed, not forcing Alister to respond. "It might be best if you found an elder vampire and remain with them for the rest of the succession. I have a feeling the Hunters won't stop. This is going to be a very bloody rite."

"Even after you…" Alister's voice trailed off.

"I'm not the humans' god," Ryuichi smiled gently, the crimson in his eyes fading back to brown.

With a nod at Alister, which the vampire returned, the First One vanished.

Cristian Dimir's silver-alloyed sword sliced cleanly though the vampire's heart, and the vampire gave a sort of ragged jerk as Dimir yanked the sword free. The vampire staggered backwards and dissolved into a pile of dust, a few stray scraps of cloth catching on the wind.

His opponent dead, Dimir lowered the sword and looked around. There didn't seem to be any other ghouls present. The young man that had nearly been eaten by the vampire was still lying on the ground, unconscious. The vampire had thrown him against the building when he had noticed Dimir. Kneeling, Dimir checked his pulse. It was stable. The wounds on his neck weren't very deep. It seemed he'd interrupted the vampire before he could truly start to feed.

Nodding, Dimir reached into his jacket and took out his cell phone to dial 9-1-1 and tell them he had a pick-up for their hospital. Then he'd see how many more pulse-challenged monsters he could kill.

Dimir flipped open the lid of his phone but froze with his thumb hovering above the '9.' His vision spun and he closed his eyes, feeling the tremor go through his body. Hunters were being killed, several of them very quickly and very brutally. Where? Near. He snapped the phone shut and turned and ran, leaving the human.

He jumped onto the top of a car and then a windowsill on the third floor, using the windowsill to boost him to the roof of a nearby six-story building. Landing on the parapet, he ran in the direction of the sensation. When he reached the edge of the building he leaped and easily made it to the next one, moving quicker than a human would be able to easily see, the length of his leaps allowing him to skip buildings.

Another human was heading his way and Dimir sensed it was a Hunter, this one from Italy. The Hunter stopped in front of him, breathing fast, trembling, terrified.

"What happened?" Dimir demanded.

"We were, we were attacked," the Hunter hesitated, stumbling as he spoke. "My squad and I – the five of us. We were chasing a pair of Sălbatics but he came to their rescue. The others are dead."

"He?" Dimir demanded. "Patriarch Deion?"

The Italian vampire hunter gave a hollow laugh. "I wish. It was their Father."

"Father?" Dimir repeated as he grabbed the man's arm, not understanding. "You mean the Sălbatic's sire?"

The Hunter shook his head, "not the sire, the Father."

Understanding dawned. "Impossible, you can't mean the First One?"

The Hunter nodded and Dimir was so shocked he let his sword slip from his fingers.

* * *

 **This is the Rite of Succession. Think it's a war zone yet?**


	13. Body Count

Yayoi looked over the bodies in baffled quiet. There were four of them around the hotel, one of which was little more than blood and small gobbets of flesh.

"There's no way this is breed work," Yayoi sighed. "I've never seen them do damage like this."

"Good guess," she heard someone behind her agree.

Yayoi turned, recognizing Cristian Dimir's voice. Dimir was indeed standing there. There was no sign of Koyama Isoshi, who had previously been assigned to help him around the city.

"What did this then?" Yayoi asked as he approached, "vampire?"

"A better guess," Dimir agreed again. "Have you ever met a vampire, Matsunaga?"

Yayoi recognized the dangerous question, but was able to answer truthfully, "yes. One of my breed cases. A nightbreed I was chasing used a young girl as a hostage and escaped. The girl was actually a vampire."

"She fooled the breed into thinking she was human?" Dimir asked.

Yayoi nodded, thinking back to the time Shido had gotten trapped in the well with a nightbreed and the girl. It was the same girl who had later told him the vampire king was dead.

"Probably Skadus clan then," Dimir mused as he walked past Yayoi to the nearest body. "Their bloodline has the ability to mimic humanity. They can artificially stimulate their heartbeat, give themselves blood pressure and body heat. Their scent even changes. The only thing they can't mimic is a reflection."

The Hunter knelt by the body as Yayoi watched. This body had one gunshot under the chin, suicide style, and a pistol lying near him was believed to be the gun he had shot himself with. Strange spiral-shaped burns were around the man's wrists that looked similar to frostbite.

"Sălbatic blood marionette probably," Dimir muttered, "one of my men wouldn't shoot himself. Those burns are from a Nosferatu's shadow though. Hmm. I find it hard to believe two of them were hunting together though I suppose there are exceptions to every rule."

"Matsunaga!"

Yayoi wondered how many more times she would be interrupted as she glanced over her shoulder to the NOS that had blocked the alleyway. With a glance at Dimir, she turned and walked to see what was going on.

"What is it?" She asked the officer standing near the cruiser.

"Have you seen Koyama?" The NOS officer asked her.

Yayoi paused in surprise but shook her head no. Koyama was one of the few NOS officers who got along with Shido despite him being a vampire. Once, he had even taken Yayoi's place at Shido's side after a breed had broken her arm. He was the only NOS to have done so. The last she'd heard was his assignment with Dimir.

"Not since Tao assigned him to help Dimir," Yayoi answered slowly.

"Today's the second day he hasn't come to work," the agent alerted her.

"Did you ask Dimir?" Yayoi stepped sideways and looked down the alleyway where Dimir was.

"Yes," the agent replied tersely. "He said the last he saw him was two days ago. Koyama went over a map of the city with him at Dimir's apartment that night and left afterwards."

Yayoi sighed deeply. The streets were far from safe right now. "It sounds like something got him."

"I thought so," the agent agreed, "but I wanted to confirm with you. You and he have worked together in the past."

He frowned when he said that, obviously finding it difficult to grasp that _two_ NOS agents were siding with a vampire.

In the alleyway, Dimir paused his examination of the body and slowly stood, sensing the presence of someone with power. Shadows congealed around him, blacking out his surroundings. When he looked out he saw a small Japanese boy who had suddenly appeared. Dimir felt this was no human.

"Are you the First One?" He asked the boy.

Ryuichi Otsuka smiled, "yes Hunter."

"What is it with you looking like a child?" Dimir asked, not bothering to waste energy in drawing a blade against the god.

"Habit," Ryuichi smiled. "You're not surprised to see me. May I assume the fifth Hunter I allowed to escape last night told you what happened?"

"He did," Dimir replied in an icy tone. "Why did you kill all my Hunters different ways? Didn't have enough energy to wipe them out in one attack?"

Ryuichi threw back his head and laughed. His laugh was most certainly not that of a child's. The First One lowered his head, turning his gaze on Dimir, lips curling in a smile.

"I could have reduced them all to chum in an instant," Ryuichi assured him, "but I don't often get a chance to kill any more so I decided to have a little fun and limited the power of my telekinesis."

All vampires had basic telepathy and telekinesis. The Bond between sire and fledgling was a form of telepathy. Their ability to solidify their blood into weapons was telekinesis. To be able to use the psychic gifts for more than basic abilities was practically unheard of. Only Cyzarine, progenitor of the "royal clan" had inherited viable telekinesis _and_ telepathy. There was no limit to her psychic powers and it was _the_ reason she had defeated her sisters and become the first vampire king. She could do whatever she put her mind to. Abraham van Helsing had inherited her viable telepathy, but only Cain had ever inherited her viable telekinesis.

"Yes," the First One added. "Cyzarine inherited my psychic abilities but only one vampire has inherited her telepathy and only one her telekinesis."

Dimir gave a start but of course, Ryuichi was a viable telepath. The First One had all access to all of the various abilities his children inherited.

Dimir steadied himself. "Why are you interfering now? You've never stopped us before."

"That's because you were created by Abraham, one of my children," Ryuichi admitted with a shrug, the tone not at all a child's light, innocent voice. It was too full of an adult's cynicism. "The vampires never wished me to either. They're independent and don't want to rely on me when they can do something themselves. They've grown into such a fine race."

"Yet we just killed a Patriarch," Dimir challenged.

"Yes," Ryuichi's expression was one of irritation. "And now you've broken the rite of the succession – the truce. Did Abraham think because you are mostly human I would not strike you? Or because you were his representatives and he a royal you would be allowed to act on his behalf?"

"Something like that," Dimir supposed.

"Think again, Hunter," Ryuichi snarled, his fangs suddenly showing and eyes red.

Dimir took a step back into a fighting stance.

"I won't hunt humans, but you are not human." Ryuichi jabbed a finger at him. "You are a child of night no matter what you call yourself and fall under my jurisdiction. The kills you got were the last. You may still defend humans from vampires if you wish, but I will not let you kill."

Dimir snarled under his breath, an animalistic like growl. Abraham had said he wanted to goad the First One and by the stars, it looked like they had succeeded. Within a breath of that thought, Ryuichi's eyes returned to brown and he once more resembled a calm young boy.

"You reek of death, Hunter," Ryuichi pointed out with a taunt to his voice. "Abraham may have taught you to cloak that scent against vampires but _I_ cannot miss it. You may want to take more care in your hunting."

The First One's body became transparent and faded into the shadows.

Dimir slowly relaxed his fighting stance when he felt the presence fade. He exhaled in relief.

"I hope Abraham knows what he's doing," he muttered to himself, "getting on that thing's nerves."

Yayoi returned to where Dimir was in the alley. He was standing now, expression distant.

"More of your Hunters are dead," she observed.

"It wasn't a vampire that killed him," Dimir explained with a snarl, his sudden viciousness surprising her. "It was the First One."

He turned and stalked out of the alleyway, leaving Yayoi standing there in surprise. The vampires' god?

"Come if you want," Dimir called over his shoulder, "but I'm going to speak to Tao."

He nodded at a pair of Hunters and they placed their fists over their hearts in a salute, moving past him and Yayoi to the bodies. Hesitating, Yayoi followed Dimir. She wanted an explanation.

When she later found herself in NOS headquarters she listened. Dimir stood across from Chairman Tao and his SIC, Arai. As their best agent, and one who had been on scene, Yayoi was present. She was still baffled over his hissed comment, having not exemplified on it.

"The First One killed the four Hunters you found," Dimir explained.

"The being that created the Nightwalkers?" Tao whispered. "A god?"

"Yes and no," Dimir corrected. "Yes, the First One created the Nightwalkers, that's why he is addressed as 'first one.' However, I don't think he's a god."

Tao frowned and leaned forward on the desk, Arai and Yayoi listening intently.

"Explain," Tao ordered.

Just this once, Dimir did not take offense at the order.

"The Nightwalkers – breeds and vampires and others – call him a god, but there's no proof he is," Dimir shrugged. "Nightwalkers fancy themselves immortal because they do not age, but they can still die. Why would the First One be any different? We have no proof he can't be killed other than the vampires' word."

Tao's expression was impossible to read, but Arai's changed from shocked to pleased. Yayoi was stunned as well. Based on everything she'd heard that wasn't possible, but how much had she heard? If they were going after the First One, they'd end up targeting Ryuichi Otsuka and his mother Megumi.

"There is even a theory among the Hunters that since Nightwalkers were created by the First One and did not exist prior to him," Dimir continued, "his death would mean it would be impossible for more to be created."

Yayoi's breath caught. They could stop this? Nightwalkers were creatures that fed on humans. Could there _really_ be a way to stop more of them from being created?

"On a different subject," Dimir added, "have you located Cain?"

"No," Tao leaned back in his seat. "There's been no sign of him."

"That's not surprising given both Kyra and Lilith want him dead," Dimir conceded, "but I hope you get a lead on him. Whatever you do, do not allow your people to approach him. As a viable telekinetic, he's one of the most dangerous vampires in the Sabbath."

"Viable," Tao frowned.

"It means Cain is capable of using his telekinesis to preform much higher-level attacks then the other vampires could dream of." Dimir replied simply. "You saw one of the Hunter's bodies, the one reduced to blood and a few gobbets. That's a good example. The First One probably did that with a look. Cain has the same potential."

"How do you _fight_ something like that?" Arai whispered half to himself.

"We have ways of matching the vampires," Dimir assured. "We'll simply have to modify our strategy to deal with their creator. It sounds cruel but the deaths of Rusev and his men have given us valuable insight in how to handle him the next time he appears."

"Very cruel," Yayoi agreed with a sigh, "but this is war, right?"

"Right," Dimir smiled softly and then abruptly asked. "By the way, have either of you ever seen a vampire with purple hair?"

Arai's reaction betrayed surprise, while Yayoi and Tao merely looked at him blankly.

"Did you say _purple_?" Tao asked.

"Yeah," Dimir agreed. "Prince Shido Cyzarine has purple hair, and I just got a report he may have been sighted in the area. Have you seen him?"

"No," Tao said after a few seconds of false thought because he knew all about Shido.

Dimir shrugged, "I didn't think so. Vampire's aren't easy to find if they don't want to be found, right, Agent Matsunaga?"

Yayoi felt chilled as she answered, "From what I've seen, that seems right."

 _This was bad_ , she thought to herself as the Hunter looked back at Tao. They knew Shido was here and she didn't think it was a coincidence Dimir had singled her out. Riho was still at her apartment, and Yayoi had a suddenly feeling that she was in danger.

"That's all then," Dimir told Tao. "The sun has risen and I know nothing else will happen until nightfall so I intend to get some sleep. I suggest you all do the same."

"Sound advice," Tao smiled wanly, still thinking. "Arai, could you show Dimir out so he can start the journey to bed?"

"Sure," Arai agreed, walking past Dimir with a motion for him to follow.

Dimir followed without comment. The door swung shut behind him. Yayoi didn't leave the room.

"Prince?" Tao said once the other two had gone, seemingly speaking the word to the air.

Yayoi knew the question was addressed to her. "He told me of his clan once he knew of the succession."

"And you didn't think it might be a good idea to pass that information on?" Tao demanded sharply. "It's bad enough we're sheltering a vampire, but a _royal_?"

"He's not interested in the succession, Chairman," Yayoi promised Tao. "He doesn't want anything to do with the other vampires."

Tao sighed, "Are you sure he isn't just using you, Matsunaga?"

"Using me?" Yayoi gave the chief a strange look, "what does that mean?"

"By working with the NOS, he has access to a great deal of information," Tao murmured, unsurprised by her reaction. "He is also, to some degree, under our protection. Perhaps he is using us, biding his time. Even if he truly is not interested in the throne, he is still using us to survive the event."

"He is a friend," Yayoi repeated what she had always told them. "He regrets the things he's done as a vampire and is trying to make amends. He's not using us, he's helping us."

"The Hunters won't see it that way," Tao warned. "I've heard how they work and to be honest, I don't trust them. To them, it is better to kill a human who _may_ have betrayed humanity then let a guilty one escape. They hold no trial, no judge, no jury."

Yayoi looked down. "Shido mentioned something along those lines."

Tao stared hard at the surface of his desk, Yayoi holding her breath. What else could she say to convince Tao not to give up Shido to the Hunters? He already knew how Shido had long worked with the NOS.

"I won't give Shido to them yet," Tao decided. "He has always been loyal and fair to us, more than I would expect given how we've roughed him up because he isn't human. I will not repay that trust with treachery if I don't have to. However, if I have to choose between the NOS and him, I will choose the NOS."

Yayoi swallowed.

"If you don't want me to be forced to make that choice, Matsunaga, I suggest you not let the Hunters learn he is here." Tao sighed.

Yayoi's look hardened. She was relieved and a little surprised Tao was giving her and Shido a chance, but doubly determined now to protect him. He was a vampire and she a human. Many times in past missions, he had ended up fighting while she could do no more than back him up. That wouldn't be the case this time.

"They won't, Chairman."

Dimir stopped walking once out in the hallway and Arai turned to look back at him.

"Vice-Chairman," Dimir spoke. "I recently saw a boy who I don't think was human. I'm not sure what he was. He may be in your files. If I drew a picture, could you check for me?"

Arai paused and then nodded. He wanted to help the Hunters, but hesitated to reveal Shido's location given Tao had ordered otherwise. This should be fine.

"Let me find you some paper," Arai told him, taking him in a different direction.

Dimir let himself be led. Judging from Arai's reaction when he'd mentioned Shido earlier, it was clear the NOS knew of him. Their denial to admit it likely meant they were working with him. He already knew from the fact Yayoi had a vampire's scent clinging to her that she was working with a vampire. Did he go so far as to assume she was working with Shido?

Whatever that case might be, it was clear the NOS had betrayed humanity by sheltering a vampire. They could be valuable allies and merely misguided, so he supposed he and the other Hunters should give them a chance to rescind their allegiance to the prince. First though, he needed to confirm his hunch about the form the First One had chosen.

 _'Contact Kis and have her search Matsunaga's place,'_ he told his partner in his mind. _'Also have them capture her once she leaves the premises. We'll need a confession from her when we confront Tao with the fact he's a traitor. Depending on how this goes, I'll probably have to take control of the NOS myself.'_

His partner queried whether he should mention the suspicion about Prince Shido working with her and Dimir agreed. The Hunters held no secrets from each other. Their willingness to share information helped all of them. Together, they would stop the Nightwalkers – no matter the cost.

* * *

The tide had come in near the docks, bringing with it debris from the ocean. There were pieces of seaweed and driftwood, and some trash, but nothing major. Indeed, only one large object bumped against one of the dock's pylons. His fingers carved out tiny v's in the water, black hair fanned out around him like a halo of ink. The man's chest had been hallowed out, the ribs snapped off and heart, lungs, and liver torn out.

After his killer had finished eating his organs, he had removed his dinner's NOS badge and driver's license before dumping him in the bay. He had miscalculated the tides though, and it had led to the body being brought back to Japan's shores instead of taken out to sea.

Though there was no identification on the body, the man's name was – or had been – Koyama Isoshi.

* * *

 **Look out Riho. You're about to stop being a hunter and become the prey.**


	14. Hunter

Riho sat on the roof of Yayoi's apartment, eyes closed as the damp breeze ruffled her bangs. It was a cloudy day that promised rain, but it _was_ near the start of the rainy season. Perhaps the First One had made this the battleground on purpose. The thick, rain-laden clouds prevented sunlight from touching the ground, allowing older vampires extra freedom to move during the day.

She looked up at the clouds, wondering what she thought of Ryuichi. Eight, nearly nine years ago, Riho, still human, had greeted Megumi Otsuka. She had been on her way home from getting groceries and come across men loading Megumi's things. Megumi had told her she was moving to her parents and explained that she was carrying her fiancée's son. Riho had hesitated when she remembered her fiancée had been a nightbreed but congratulated her none the less.

 _"It's real active you see," Megumi smiled as she stroked her stomach. "It moves a lot these days. Would you like to feel it?"_

 _Remembering again that its father was a breed Riho had hesitantly said, "Thanks, but…"_

 _"Feel it!" Megumi ordered with a snap as Riho took a step back._

 _She grabbed Riho's arm, making her drop her schoolbag, and pulled her hand forward. Riho struggled, a feeling of dread on her._

 _"There you go," Megumi smiled, her eyes blank. "Say hello to the nice lady."_

 _Riho's palm was pressed against Megumi's enlarged stomach. Normally she would have smiled but she could feel something moving in Megumi's stomach, squirming, something that pulsed. The heartbeat she felt was sticky somehow and the thing inside seemed to swim as it twisted, not even humanoid._

 _"You grow up like her real soon," Megumi smiled, eyes full of love but otherwise devoid of emotion. "I'll do my share and keep up a good diet, you hear?"_

 _Her smile was bland and something about the way she said_ diet _made Riho's skin crawl. Riho felt a hand press against her palm from within the stomach, but there too many fingers. Terrified, she'd screamed and jerked her hand free with such force she'd fallen._

She remembered Ryuichi's smile as he sat on the monkey bars, having frozen time.

What was he like? Was he really a god? How could he condone letting the vampires, his children, attack each other with intent to kill?

Riho leaned back, wondering what she thought about this entire thing. She felt her skin crawl at the thought of the deal Shido had made with Kyra. He'd help in exchange for amnesty for himself and Riho. If she wasn't here, Riho knew, he would have been able to refuse her.

Riho sighed, drawing her knees to her chest. She wasn't strong enough yet. It was frustrating. She laid her forehead on her knees, ignoring the wind.

The air shifted around her. Riho's muscles froze in place. What, what was she feeling? Something was wrong. She raised her head sharply. Her breath caught. Someone was standing on the edge of the roof across from her, making her come to her feet. When had they gotten here? She hadn't felt an approach. She couldn't hear a heartbeat. Another vampire? No, she didn't think so.

He smiled at Riho and she took a step back. She had a _bad_ feeling.

"I wasn't expecting a vampire here," the man said with a smile, Japanese fluid. "What a nice surprise."

A heartbeat suddenly broke the silence and Riho jumped as she suddenly heard it. It was coming from the man. He was _human_? She hadn't heard the heartbeat approach. How had he cloaked it? The human stepped forward and Riho stepped back again, unnerved. This was wrong. Her eyes caught the necklace on the human's neck, muscles locking again. It was a cross etched with scratches.

"N-no way," Riho gasped, "a Hunter?"

The Hunter smiled. Riho bit the side of her hand blood welling up and forming into her sword as her eyes shifted to gold. She slid her foot back and raised her sword, reaching out for Shido.

"A blood blade," the Hunter observed, "not bad for a fledgling."

Riho barely hid her start. How did he know she was a fledgling?

"You still smell a little human," the Hunter explained. "It takes ten years for a newly sired vampire to fully lose the human scent. Typically, they can't form blood weapons until the end of those ten years. That's a fledgling. Yet you look comfortable with that."

Was it really so hard for a fledgling to create a blood blade? She'd been able to do it within her first year.

"You're wasting time if you're calling for your sire," the Hunter warned, reaching into his jacket.

He withdrew a piece of what looked like wood, but Riho corrected herself in confusion. A sword hilt? The Hunter swung his arm downward, the sharp movement causing the blade to extend from its hidden location in the hilt. The segments unfolded and locked into place. Sword!

The Hunter was suddenly in front of her. Riho hadn't even seen him move. She threw her sword upward, their blades' edges raking across each other. Her deflection was flawed and the tip of his sword cut her cheek as she buckled by the force behind his blow. Her cheek went icy numb from the silver in it.

She jumped backwards, desperately shoving him away. He pressed the attack, knocking her sword aside. Riho struggled to deflect his blade and her side went numb as the sword grazed her rib. How was he so fast? He was as fast as her!

Riho turned and jumped from the roof, leaping over the building for another. She turned while in midair, realizing he was in the air as well. Humans couldn't jump so high! Their blades clashed and hers shattered. Her eye's widened as fragments of her blood blade flew through the air around her. The Hunter's foot slammed into her chest, knocking her from the air.

Riho was sent streaking down and crashed through the roof of a building, the cement giving in. She hit the floor of the top level, cracking the floor around her. Blood flew from her mouth as she slammed into it.

Riho stayed where she lay, looking up into the star-streaked night. His blow had such force behind it she had been knocked through the roof. Warmth spread along her side as the sword cut continued to bleed, the silver preventing the blood from clotting. Her chest was numb. Shido-san had always warned her about Hunters, but she'd never believed they could pose such a threat to her. They were human, weak, as she had once been.

The Hunter fell the twenty feet from the air and down to the floor where she lay. He landed near her. Riho struggled to brace herself on her elbows, trying to sit up. Pain shot through her back and she dropped flat to the ground again, trying not to scream. The pain stopped midway down, surprising her. She couldn't feel her lower body, her legs unresponsive. Her spine… the blow must have damaged it. The damage wasn't healing, too severe to instantly mend.

She cried out in her mind, but she could sense Shido only distantly, as if she were calling out from opposite side of a canyon. What was wrong?

The Hunter flipped his blade into a reverse grip. She couldn't move. Her chest hurt too much. She feared looking down to see how much damage his strike had done for it to have paralyzed part of her body. He raised the blade over her head. He wasn't even going to give some snappy last comment was he? She could see it in his eyes. She wasn't human. To him, she was just some tick, a parasite feeding on the real beings, and he was the exterminator. She had never hurt a human though.

The blade came down and she cringed.

The air broke with a crack and the sword was knocked to one side, halting its descent. There was a second gunshot and Riho saw the bullet shoot through the air this time, only to be deflected by the Hunter's sword. He jumped away from her and Riho froze as she detected a new presence.

A blur leaped over her and blades rang as the Hunter defended himself from his attacker's blood blade. Shido! No, Riho's eyes widened. It was a different vampire, one she'd never seen before. The vampire kicked his opponent's leg and slamming his fist into his chest. The Hunter was knocked back, cubicles smashing. Sparks flew as computers were smashed.

"Why don't you pick on someone your own age, you damn Hunter?" The vampire challenged.

Riho was glad they were in an office building that was closed for the day and glad for the first time that the succession was going on. There were more vampires here then there normally was. This one must have seen the Hunter attack her.

She was able to sit up easier this time and she tried to stand, only for her legs to remain still. The wounds were too severe to heal that quickly. It was ridiculous. Riho dragged herself forward, reaching for a nearby desk so she could pull herself upright. She needed to leave now.

The Hunter came back with a snarl and the vampire blocked him. A shockwave exploded as their blades clashed. Desks and cubicles were knocked back ad Riho flinched as the compressed air struck her, knocking her forward. All of the windows exploded outward with a catastrophic crash. Cracks appeared in the floor, a crater forming under their feet.

"N-no way," Riho stuttered at the show of their power, paling.

She'd seen Shido battle many nightbreeds and arguments with Cain, but she'd never seen two vampire seriously fight. The Hunter wasn't a vampire though, which made it all the harder to grasp. How could a human be so strong?

Her head jerked as she sensed a third presence. There was a flicker of movement and a vampire landed near her.

"Can you move?" He asked Riho, crouching by her side.

He spoke in Latin, a dead language among humans but the national language among vampires. Since they were spread across the globe, they needed at least one language everyone could speak. Riho knew it. Shido had been diligent in his lessons for her. She knew he had been, so why hadn't she sensed his approach either?

"Come on," he said, grabbing her arm to drag her to her feet, "while my sire's keeping that human busy."

"I can't!" Riho blurted out, responding in Latin.

He blinked at her and Riho looked at her legs. His expression softened.

"Fine," he sighed.

He leaned forward and wrapped an arm around her waist, hoisting her into the air.

"H-hold on," Riho stuttered.

"Later," he dismissed. "Now's our time to leave."

He straightened, holding Riho in his arms as if she weighed nothing. Crouching, he jumped up to the hole in the roof. There was a glint of metal before they reached it and Riho's eyes widened as she saw the knife. He couldn't dodge it in midair carrying her!

A gunshot snapped in the air and the bullet knocked the silver knife aside. Riho's eyes jumped to the vampire fighting the Hunter. He was holding a gun. The Hunter tried to strike while he was distracted, but the vampire knocked the sword aside with the barrel of the gun and slammed a sidekick into the human. He blocked it by raising his sword in front of him, the vampire's boot striking the flat of his blade.

Riho and the vampire reached the roof and he landed on it. He glanced back briefly before leaping into the air, leaving the building behind. Riho didn't struggle in his grasp, least he drop her. She could still hear the sounds of the fight, though they faded. The vampire covered several blocks in a few leaps, coming to a halt on another roof. He knelt and set her down, letting her lean against the parapet.

"Can you use your legs at all?" He asked gently.

Riho tried and then shook her head, not looking up. The vampire sighed.

"I'm Conner," he told her, "my sire is Parris. He'll catch up soon. This won't be the first Hunter he's killed since we came here. After he catches up we can find something to for you to eat. That should fix you up."

"Riho," Riho told him.

"I thought you looked Japanese and that name is," Conner observed, "you from here?"

"Yes," Riho replied, "exactly here."

Conner blinked and then gave a wan smile. "This is your territory?"

"Yes," Riho replied testily.

While she was glad Conner and his sire had shown up, they, and the Hunter who attacked her, wouldn't be here if the succession wasn't happening _here_.

"Sorry for intruding," Conner said shyly. "Blame Parris when he comes. He's the one who dragged me here all the way from America."

"You're American?" Riho knew his name sounded English.

"Chicago," Conner's smile became more cat-like, "from the vampire city Ravernia."

"I don't know it," Riho admitted.

"You wouldn't unless you were clan Skadus," Conner chuckled, "it's like one big speakeasy. The 1920s never ended for it."

Riho didn't understand the date reference, guessing it was an American thing, and wondered what the word speakeasy meant. She had the feeling that even though Conner was several years older then her physically, she had been a vampire for longer. She was about to ask what he meant when Conner looked back the way they had come. Riho froze when she saw someone leap through the air, but relaxed when she recognized the vampire.

Parris landed on the roof near them and walked to Riho and Conner. He was limping slightly and there was blood on his left pant leg, clothing ruffled. His light brown shoulder-length hair was tousled, gold eyes pained. Both he and Conner were dressed casually in shirts, jeans, and sneakers. Parris had a dark blue denim jacket, though Riho's eyes were drawn to Parris's left hip, where there was a holstered pistol.

"Are you okay little one?" Parris asked, eyes flicking to Riho. "You're not dust."

"She can't walk," Conner said worriedly.

"Then we'll catch her something fresh," Parris dismissed, "I need a bite to clear the silver out of my system. Damn Hunter grazed me."

"He's dead?" Riho blurted out.

Parris smiled at her and reached into his jacket's pocket, withdrawing his hand. Something glittered as it fell. Riho's breath caught. It was a broken chain wrapped around his fingers and hanging from the chain was a cross-shaped pendent etched with scratches.

"Yeah," Parris promised, fangs gleaming in the starlight, "I get to add another cross to my collection." Riho watched him tuck it back into his pocket as he continued. "I'm sure we can find something to eat. I'll let you have first bite little one."

"R-Riho," Riho corrected with a stutter. "I-I um, I mean I don't really… hunt…"

Both of the vampires looked at her and Riho averted her gaze. Even though she couldn't blush as strongly as she could when she was alive, she could still feel heat rising to her cheeks.

Parris sighed. "You're one of those lifers then."

"Lifer?" Riho repeated softly.

"You either have a donor or you do that catch-and-release practice," Parris said. "You never take enough blood that their lives are in danger – they're just left feeling anemic for a few days. That means you have to hunt several to get your fill. I can't believe there are some of you in Japan to. Vampires are meant to hunt."

"To?" Riho was surprised.

Outside of Shido, the only contact she'd had with other vampires was Cain and that little girl from the well. She'd assumed other vampires acted like them. There were others who didn't kill?

"There've never been so many lifers before," Parris muttered, rubbing the back of his neck.

"And you'd know?" Conner asked, bemused. "What was it Keir called you? A young pup?"

Parris raised an eyebrow at his fledgling and Conner looked away, though he was smiling. Riho found herself smiling to. These two weren't like the other vampires she had met. She paused, remembering that she couldn't reach Shido.

"Why can't I contact my sire?" She asked them, "is it the silver poisoning?"

Parris glanced at her. "You are your sire must be loners. The information's been passed to all our cities. Unfortunately, we don't know what happens. It's a new trick the Hunters started using a year ago. I suppose it's easier to hunt the fledglings if they know the sire won't sense their distress and come. Even through the muddlement though, a sire can sense when their fledgling dies. One of the tactics they use is to defeat the fledgling and hold them prisoner. When the sire is unable to speak to them, they'll become concerned and try to track them."

His voice stopped so Riho whispered, "right into a trap."

Parris nodded darkly. "The tactic's lost some efficiency since we learned of it, but we're still spreading the warning. Less then half the vampire population lives in our underground cities. The rest are loners, which are hard to contact. The fact that you don't know about this proves it."

"Will I be able to contact my sire again soon?" Riho asked softly.

Parris nodded agreement. "The fledglings who escaped said they were able to contact their sire after a few hours. You'd better stay with us until the effect wears off. It's dangerous to be alone right now. I'll find something for you to eat. Geez, you'll probably need more then one if you don't want to kill them. Well, we'd better start."

Conner picked up Riho, ignoring her as she started stuttering again.

"You'll be fine once you get some fresh blood," Parris promised Riho. "The silver poisoning is slowing your healing. The Hunters found a way to refine the silver they coat their blades with. You're lucky I noticed your fight."

"How are humans able to pose such a threat to us?" Riho asked.

"Simple," he replied, "they gave up their humanity."

"But they're still human," Riho argued.

"Yes," Parris agreed, "but they gave up their humanity."

Riho blinked, confused. Parris turned and her breath caught. Stitched onto the back of the jacket were crosses – twelve of various designs, all etched with scratches. They were the cross pendants from the Hunter's necklaces, Riho realized in shock. It was his collection. He'd killed at least twelve Hunters. Thirteen, she corrected. There was the Hunter he had just killed to protect her.

But what did he mean by the humans giving up their humanity?

* * *

Yayoi tightened her grip on the steering wheel as she headed back to her apartment, intending to warn Riho. She had a bad feeling from Dimir. He unnerved her worse then a nightbreed, but she didn't know why. She knew the rumors, that the Hunters gained their strength from drinking Van Helsing's vampiric blood, but that couldn't be all. What were they?

Her car came out from the underground tunnel, headlights blazing a trail on the asphalt. She began to turn a corner, only to hit her brakes. There was a crashed car on the side of the road, a large part of the windshield shattered inward. She slammed on her brakes fully when she saw what looked like scratches from claws on the car's frame and that the driver's window had been smashed inward. Yayoi grabbed her pistol at her side, slamming the gearshift into park and leaping out of the car.

She had thought all of the nightbreeds had fled Yokohama when the vampires came, but it seemed not. Yayoi looked inside the car but there was no one inside. There was a briefcase on the passenger seat and blood on the diver's seat. She looked around, but didn't see the driver. Her eyes cast about for clues, hoping she wasn't too late.

Movement at the treeline caught her attention and she approached. A small branch was hanging from broken from the tree, little more then a twig, swinging in the wind. Yayoi watched it. The twig was still green, so it hadn't been broken long ago. In fact, she could see sap welling up where it had been broken. Someone had just passed by and broken it.

"Breed," she muttered.

She stepped off the road into the forest, leaving her car running. The forest was on the edge of a slope and she worked her way down, eyes casting about, lighting on crushed leaves on the ground. Faintly, she began to hear sounds. Yayoi followed them, gun raised, recognizing the sounds in frustration. She'd been too late. The breed was already feeding. She could still kill it.

She caught sight of the breed bending over a man whose chest had been torn open. This nightbreed had a human host and it was the human who was currently feeding, eating human flesh to keep the breed they had contracted with under control. He ate, the sounds echoing as they tore into, chewed, and swallowed the man's organs.

The man laughed, though the sound was hollow. It did not sound human. The muzzle of Yayoi's pistol fell to the ground, arms limp in shock. Yayoi had lowered her gun because she recognized the human. His wavy black hair was tied back in a loose plait and when he turned his head slightly she could see three claw-shaped scars on the left side of his neck. His skin was pale, European.

He stood fully, turning to face Yayoi. His blue-green eyes were bemused, irises dilated to nearly cover the sclerae. The cross on his neck at its tips inlaid with garnet, the cross's intersection encircled with a silver aureole, arms etched with scratches.

"You're very nosy Officer," Cristian Dimir sighed as he smiled at her.

His lips and teeth were stained red, blood running down his chin and smeared along his cheeks. In one hand was an unbeating human heart. A bite had been taken from it and Dimir was chewing. He swallowed.

"I put a glamor around the car I dragged the man from," Dimir nodded back to the road, "so people would drive by it. But I suppose someone like you, who knows about the Nightwalkers, wouldn't be affected by it. You've interrupted my meal. You should have kept driving."

Yayoi's gun came back up, finger on the trigger. She shot but Dimir stepped sideways, the bullet passing by his hair. He smiled.

"You're wasting time with that toy," Dimir laughed. "If it doesn't work on a vampire it won't work on me. The bullet just travels _so_ slowly through the air from my perspective. If it was a sneak attack with a silencer where the vampire wasn't paying attention I could see one shot standing a chance, but it won't work in a situation like this."

Yayoi hesitated in firing again. "You, you're a breed!"

"No," Dimir disagreed, the laughter fading as he became serious. "I'm human."

"Why don't I believe you?" She asked, looking at the heart he held.

Dimir followed her gaze and shrugged, "well, human with some enhancements."

"Enhancements!"

"Of course," the Hunter promised her. "Do you think ordinary humans stand a chance at hunting vampires? Why, my sister Silvia killed one of the vampire's patriarchs not too long ago. Unlike the reports that are circulating, she didn't need her triple's help to do it – or Command Van Helsing."

Yayoi felt as if cold water had been splashed on her. She knew the four patriarchs were the four leaders of the vampire's clans. They were the most powerful of the Sabbath. One… one human had killed one?

"You can't be this strong after only drinking vampire blood," Yayoi disagreed, "there's no way that would be enough."

"Now you're deluding yourself," Dimir scolded with a sigh. "You already know perfectly well where the rest of the power comes from."

Yayoi was quiet for a moment before saying, "I do. How could you let a breed possess you?"

Her voice jumped in strength at the last question, though Dimir only shrugged. "Easily. Vampires and nightbreeds are the two main species of the Nightwalkers. They've always vied for dominance. However, the vampires have always been stronger then us, more powerful. They despise us because in order to eat we must kill, but they can feed from a human without killing them. They consider us wasteful pests, interfering with _their_ world."

Us. Yayoi swallowed. She wasn't speaking to Dimir anymore. She was speaking to the nightbreed he'd made a contract with.

"So you went to the Hunters and offered to possess their warriors," Yayoi forced herself to say. "Both of you gained the power to slay vampires."

"Close," the nightbreed-possessed human stated blandly, "but Van Helsing came to _us_. He's quite modern compared to the rest of the Nightwalker world. He does not fear change. We will allow him to become the vampire's king."

"You Hunters said you wanted to protect humans!" Yayoi slashed her gun through the air. "But you're killing them Dimir! You're killing and eating them to keep your breed happy!"

"Naïve!" Dimir shouted, cutting her off.

Yayoi took half a step back. Dimir's irises contracted back to their normal size and Yayoi knew she was speaking to him again, not the breed.

"This is war Matsunaga!" Dimir barked, "and there are casualties _in every war_. You must accept that if you wish to fight. Yes, we kill humans, but their death gives us the strength to slay vampires. The number of vampires has gone from tens of thousands to less then ten thousand since Van Helsing came into power. It is worth it."

"Worth it?" She blurted out. "How is killing even one innocent worth it? That man likely has friends, _family_. They will never see him again unless it's to put them in the ground!"

Her voice had jumped an octave and her eyes stung against her wish. Kasumi. Her sister. She was dead and Yayoi would give almost anything to have her back. When she joined the NOS she vowed to protect others so they would not have to lose their family as she did. She would be their sword and shield – not their executioner!

"No they won't," Dimir agreed, somber, "and that is unfortunate, but his death gives me the strength to fight. Because I have killed him, I am now strong enough to kill vampires, perhaps I would even kill the vampire who would otherwise slay his family. If he truly cared about his family, his fellow humans, surely he would believe his sacrifice is worth it to protect them."

"That is a hypothetical situation you are twisting," Yayoi retorted, her voice nearly a snarl, "and you know it."

"No it's not," Dimir retorted, shaking his head. "Didn't you hear me? The number of vampires in existence has dropped to less than ten thousand in the five centuries that Van Helsing has been in command. Yes, we've killed some to maintain our power but do you know how many lives we've saved? How many humans that would otherwise be killed by vampires saved because we slew their would be attackers? 90% of the vampire species has been eliminated. Do you know how many humans would now be dead if we had not killed those vampires first? Far more then we kill to maintain our power."

Yayoi ducked her head. His voice was so calm, so steady, so strong. He truly believed every word he was saying. And she had thought Cain was a monster.

"The ends do not justify the means," she told him, trying not to tremble. "There isn't some cosmic scale out there that decides that because you've saved more people then you've killed what you are doing is right. You are no better then the monsters you kill."

"No," Dimir agreed, "we're not."

Yayoi raised her head. She hadn't expected that answer.

"We are monsters," he agreed. "We know that. The instant we made our contract with our breed partner we gave up the right to call ourselves human. But that's alright. We'll gladly sacrifice our own humanity if that means saving everyone else."

"This isn't some holy war!" Yayoi shouted. "This isn't some noble crusade! You are slaying innocent people to reach your own goal!"

"It's your goal to, Matsunaga," Dimir reminded her. "You're an NOS agent. You're job is to kill nightbreeds before they can eat humans. That's an admirable goal. We need organizations like the NOS to take care of the breeds. The breeds are weak, but numerous. Groups like you can handle the numerous small fry while we go for the few elite – the vampires. Humanity is protected from both."

"I don't make deals with breeds," Yayoi vowed, "nor do I slaughter for them."

"Which would be why you need Shido's help on your cases, right?" Dimir smiled.

Yayoi gave a start. "Shido?"

She made it seem like she had never heard the word before, but her pulse accelerated. They knew his name?

"Knew it," Dimir smirked. The expression would have made him look boyish if it wasn't for the blood painting the lower half of his face. "The rogue prince of the vampires is helping you. What an ironic fate for my cousin."

Yayoi's eyes widened. "Did you just say-"

"Cousin?" Dimir finished for her. "Yes. Of course, he's many generations removed, being four centuries older than me, but we're from the same house. Shido, as he's going by now, was one of us until he sided with the vampires against humanity, just like his sire. It's ironic. In his human life he worked at the side of Vladimir Tepes and the rest of the vampires, and now that he's a vampire, he's helping the human NOS hunt Nightwalkers. I suppose that means he really did lose his human memories. He's a traitor to humanity, and you've been acting as his donor, letting him feed from you. Helping a vampire is a crime punishable by death, and don't say you're not, Arai's told me otherwise."

Yayoi aimed her pistol again. Arai, Chairman Tao's second in command. He'd sold out Shido.

"You're not as powerful as you think you are," Yayoi promised him.

"Oh?" Dimir raised an eyebrow. "I'm not?"

"No," Yayoi agreed. "Shido has killed many humans who were possessed by nightbreeds, even those like you who willingly formed a contract with one. Your power is no match for him. That Hunter Lupei was all but killed by Lilith. Four of your Hunters were slain with a wave of the First One's hand. Contract or not, you're still human."

"You sound like Koyama," Dimir laughed, licking blood of his lips. He raised the raw heart to his lips and sank his teeth into it, tearing out a chunk and starting to chew as if it were an apple.

"Koyama," Yayoi's trembling stopped. "He's missing. What did you do?"

"Koyama Isoshi," Dimir smiled, "he's quite a bit more intelligent then the rest of you. He figured out we humans couldn't be able to hunt vampires without help. He didn't need to catch one of us feeding to realize the truth. Although he was just like you, impossible to reason with. If he had been a little more rational, I wouldn't have needed to eat him."

"I take back what I said earlier," Yayoi told him calmly. "You're not a monster like some of the vampires out there – you're far worse."

"Of course we are," Dimir finished chewing and swallowed. "The only thing that can kill a monster is an even worse one. We already know there is no redemption, no salvation, for what we do, and we've accepted that. No matter what we do, it's worth it in the end. Without the vampires, there will be only the nightbreeds preying on human. Compared to how difficult vampires are, we shouldn't have much trouble wiping them out. Then Earth will then be where it belongs, in human custody."

He raised the heart to his lips as if to take another bite, but then changed his mind and lowered his hand.

"You said that our bodies were still human," he told her softly, "and that we were no match for a vampire."

"Yes," Yayoi repeated, a note of trepidation edging her words. Dimir's voice had changed.

"You really do sound like Koyama," Dimir admitted, "but you're wrong agent. After all, what rule is there that states I'm only allowed to make a contract with one nightbreed at a time?"

His eyes cut to her, irises dilating, breed eyes.

"W-what did you just say?" Yayoi asked, certain she had misheard him.

"Normal humans would have trouble with just one breed sharing their heart," Dimir agreed, "but I've been strengthened by the blood of Abraham Van Helsing, a royal. As have the other Hunters. So I'll ask again Matsunaga, what rule says only allow one breed can possess me at a time?"

He took a step forward and Yayoi took a step back, gun trembling. There was no way. That wasn't possible. She'd never once come across a case where a human had a contract with two breeds at once. She never heard of more than one breed haring the same body under any conditions. How was he maintaining himself? Why hadn't he been fully possessed by them yet?

"The nightbreeds don't mind sharing a body or even food," Dimir smiled smoothly, taking another bite from the heart. "They know I have the training and knowledge, and just need the power. If they turn on me, they lose the possibility to kill vampires and they don't want that. It's a bit uncomfortable for them, but they'll tolerate it. If one of them tries to turn on me the others will kill him to protect me. You'd be amazed how many breeds have such a grudge against the vampires they're willing to work with us. We always have breeds willing to volunteer, though finding hosts are harder."

How many nightbreeds were in his body? Yayoi's mind whirled.

"The four the First One killed were low-ranking, only two nightbreeds per warrior," Dimir smiled. "They weren't able to adapt to the Commander's blood as well as I have, or they haven't been fed it as long. My parents mixed his blood into my milk bottles when I was an infant. They know it's terrible, having to put such a burden on their child, altering them to the point where they are not quite human anymore. They knew it was the price for victory against the vampires however, and that the goal was worthy of the sacrifice."

What sort of parents would do something like that to their own child? Ones who were so deluded they thought they were doing the right thing, Yayoi knew. This was fanaticism at its worst.

"Lupei had three nightbreeds," Dimir continued smoothly, "so he should be able to handle a vampire on his own, but Lilith's royal. That changes the balance. Every time a new vampire king is chosen, the king feeds directly on the immortal blood of the First One. That's why they alone have red eyes. Including Vladimir, there have been four. That's four times immortal blood has strengthened the royal clan. They're a handful, but luckily few in number, always worried one of their clanmates will kill them and steal the throne, they keep their own numbers down."

Dimir himself always spoke as if he had only one nightbreed partner, but he had many more. It was easiest to think of the Nightwalker in his skin as being only one partner, and only one ever spoke to him. The rest remained silent, resting or watching through his senses, giving him strength when he needed it.

"You can't imagine how much stronger the nightbreeds make us," Dimir smiled. "One breed with its host may not be too much of an advantage against a trained vampire, but the abilities overlap. When you have multiple partners the scope and stamina of abilities increases exponentially – not linearly. Each breed also has unique abilities different from others that I can access, giving me a far greater range of skills then any vampire could possess. Of course, I can use the skills as expertly as the nightbreed who owns them. I also have their combat experience to draw on. If a human isn't able to adapt to having at least two breeds, they aren't given a Hunter's cross. As you said, they'd be too weak with just one, and we don't send them out to die."

Missions were set up like that, Dimir recalled. The weaker the Hunter the younger the vampire they were sent to kill and the more aid they had. Van Helsing didn't use the weaker Hunters as cannon fodder. If they couldn't pull their weight under those circumstances that was their fault but they were comrades-at-arms and would not be abandoned. That was why even weaker Hunters still had crosses loaded with scratches, sent after fledglings and other young vampires while the stronger Hunters dealt with the older vampires.

"You're not human," Yayoi said flatly.

"No," Dimir agreed, "which is why the First One hasn't already involved himself. Not only are we led by a vampire, we are part Nightwalker ourselves. His own promise not to interfere with the development of his children has tied his hands. As for what I am…"

His shadow shaped itself. Dimir had sent it to Matsunaga amid the layer of leaf litter on the forest floor. The moon was practically full yet, only just starting to wan. It provided enough light for the shadow to manifest sufficiently.

Yayoi gasped. Her pistol fell to the ground, followed by droplets of blood. Her expression was one of confusion. He would have scolded her for it if the situation was different. She was human in a Nightwalker world. Without the vampire protecting her, an ending like this was inevitable.

More blood fell and Yayoi looked down. The shadow had broken apart into needles and lifted off the ground, needles of it streaking up to go through her body. Different needles had gone through different parts of her body, her stomach, thigh, forearm, shin. One had gone through her neck, just to the left of her spine. Three had gone through her chest. Many nightbreeds had the ability to manipulate their own shadow, and the strength in that skill had been exponentially overlapped in Dimir's body.

"You're not dealing with human criminals here," he scolded Matsunaga, though gently, voice soft. "These are demons. If you want to play in the Nightwalker world you have to stop being a weak human. That's the cost. It's unfortunate you can't understand that. Even if you could, I could never forgive your sheltering of a vampire. It's like Van Helsing taught us: better to kill a human who may be innocent then let a guilty one escape."

The shadowy needles retracted to the ground and returned to Dimir's side. Yayoi fell heavily to the ground, unable to catch herself. Blood soon soaked the ground, spreading rapidly now that there was nothing to obscure her wounds. Dimir sighed. Misguided or not, he regretted having to do that. She was an ally in the fight against the Nightwalkers and he could tell from her tone when she'd mentioned family earlier that she'd likely lost at least some of hers. More trouble then she was worth, he supposed. If she was sympathetic to one vampire it would cloud her judgment in dealing with others.

He tossed what was left of the heart into his mouth and started to chew, turning away to look at the body to see what else he could eat.

Yayoi's hand moved to the pistol, only a few inches from her fingers, and wrapped them around the grip. Dimir heard leaves move behind him but assumed Matsunaga was struggling. Her gun came up and she fired. He heard the sound of the gun firing and the bullet flying but didn't bother to dodge. A streak of shadow placed itself between him and the bullet to deflect it. The silver-coated bullet cut through the shadow as if it was not there, though stopped when it struck the dagger Dimir had shifted into place. It struck the flat of the dagger blade and fell to the ground. Dimir looked at the dagger, noting to some displeasure there was now a scratch on it. The tip of the bullet was blunted flat from the impact.

"I almost forgot you NOS have silver-coated bullets," Dimir mused, "and silver does not mix well with my breed abilities. Well, it's not a problem since Nightwalkers despise guns… usually anyway. Trying to get off one last shot despite the pain as you bleed to death, it seems I underestimated you a bit Matsunaga. You would have made a worthy Hunter."

He looked over at her, collapsed on the ground, finger on the trigger, eyes still open.

"But you're already dead."

* * *

 **Yeah, I feel kind of sorry for Yayoi, but Dimir has a point. Usually in the series, Yayoi gets saved more then she does the saving. She doesn't have a damsel in distress personality, but the writers of the anime just made it so Shido was the hero every time. She's just in over her head, though Shido won't see it that way when he finds out she's dead.**

 **Keep watch now, things are going to start moving fast.**

 **Oh, also, what do you think of Conner and Parris? First, let me assuage your fears. I don't intend to pair off Riho and Conner despite them being about the same age physically. She's Shido's. They're going to be reoccurring, so I'd like to know how you think of them.**


End file.
